


fire and magic

by BlueSapphire718



Series: pitch black (but you can see the stars) [4]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Reincarnation, Everyone Needs A Hug, Friendship between unlikely people, Gen, Kurama is Remus Lupin, Kurama is so done, Multi, Protective Kyuubi | Nine-tails | Kurama, Sakumo is Sirius Black, unexpected characters - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-09
Updated: 2020-02-09
Packaged: 2020-08-13 23:31:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 27,998
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20182534
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlueSapphire718/pseuds/BlueSapphire718
Summary: Whoever decided that Kurama is supposed to be reborn as a wizard needs to die. Immediately. Because he refuses to live with lazy-ass shinobi wannabes, his magic and chakra is corrosive, he’s apparently a werewolf, and did he mention these tiny idiots are following him everywhere?(Or, an AU where Kurama is reborn as Remus Lupin, accidentally makes friends with a few humans, and is absolutely done with Voldemort.)





	1. 1960-1972

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> From childhood to first year of Hogwarts.

Remus Lupin was born on March 10, 1960.

He has unusually cardinal red hair, pale skin, and magic that often harms than soothes. A pair of dark red eyes watches his parents warily, and bares his teeth when they did something he didn’t like. He flares his magic and burns them when they touch him.

Yes, Remus is an odd child, but his parents love him regardless.

Kurama really can’t help but scream at that, because after leaving Naruto, he’s not ready to have humans take care of him. He doesn’t want to be called Remus, and he’s not… not ready to do this yet. He wants his old partner back.

But right now, he’s reborn as Remus Lupin and his first step is to have his old name back.

(He insists his parents call him Kurama, and demands they ‘legally’ change his name to Kurama, too. It doesn’t work, but after bothering them about for perhaps the millionth time, they call him Kuma just to satisfy him.

It works for now.)

* * *

At age four, he’s bitten by a wolf-like creature and he screams at the thing as his chakra begin to burn his body in an attempt to get rid of the wound (his blood burns with agony, wolf instincts trying to take over and telling him to _ bitekillmaimhumansbloodeat_-).

“Go away!” Kurama screams at the wolf thing, before he allows his chakra to bubble to the surface and ** _burn_ ** the wolf thing away. The thing shrieks with pain, drops him, gives him a glare full of hatred (it will never affect him, he is the embodiment of hatred, after all) and runs.

He refuses to be beaten by that wolf thing and forces his chakra to counteract every instinct, burns away at the curse wound given to him, little by little (it goes away after a week, and he feels so damn weak from using so much chakra to get it away-).

His parents are terrified, and refuses to come near him during the full moon after he’s been bitten. They force him into the forest and they lock the door.

(He doesn’t transform, but he does start practicing on his abilities, especially jutsu and fuinjutsu. He likes doing _ Bijuudama _ the most.)

* * *

An old man comes one day, the day after he turns eleven and gently asks his parents if he can go to a school that teaches magic. Hogwarts, the old man (he calls himself Albus Dumbledore and Kurama has to admit that is one of the worst names he’s ever heard) says, will welcome Kurama as a student so they can test if werewolves can attend school.

Kurama cannot help but point out that he already received his letter (waves it around to emphasize his point) and says he’s not a flea-bitten dog and he refuses to be called a werewolf when he isn’t one.

“But you were bitten by a werewolf, were you not?” Dumbledore questions. He says yes, and sees the bastard’s eyes light up like stars. The magic inside the old man grows excited for something, before calming down.

Oh, for _ Sennin_’s sake, this man is _ senile_.

“Well, I guess that settles it,” the old man says cheerfully, because yes, he’s definitely a werewolf and will bite people so they can turn into werewolves too! He’s a fox, a _ Bijuu_, the _ Kyuubi_, not a fucking wolf that has rabies. At least he has _ some _ respect and not go chomping on people at _ night _.

“Don’t worry, Remus, we’ll have a room ready for you to transform in when you arrive at Hogwarts.”

It takes all of his willpower to not launch himself at the old man and disintegrate him into nothing.

* * *

“Do you mind if me and my friend sit here?” a shy voice asks as Kurama reads his book. He spares a glance at the pair, sees red hair (his hackles raise as he bites back a snarl because _ killkillkillshesealedhimaway_-) before seeing bright green eyes, forcing his chakra to calm down. “You okay?”

“Just fucking sit before I kick you both out,” Kurama snaps out, snapping his book shut with a loud thud, making the other two jump in shock. He places the book back, taking out a small pot of ink and a brush, begins tracing seals on his skin to put his books in.

The pair sits in front of him, and he notes one of them (the girl) looks like Kushina with green eyes and the other one is a sour-looking boy who seems to want to be anywhere but here. He doesn’t care though, because he isn’t moving until they get to Hogwarts.

“My name is Lily,” the girl says in a hesitant tone, before she points at the boy beside her with a large grin. “That’s Severus, my best friend.” The boy quietly protests he can introduce himself before flushing an unhealthy red, and shushes himself. “What’s yours?”

“Kurama,” he grumbles, narrows his eyes at the girl as he finishes the seal and waits for it to dry.

Lily watches him in fascination, before he says, “Uzumaki Kurama.”

“What are you doing, anyways?” Severus asks in a stiff tone, and he can feel waves of jealousy from him, and he snorts. The boy shoots him a glare, makes him raise an unimpressed eyebrow in return. “That’s not magic.”

“Not magic, but it’s something that can kill you since you aren’t properly trained for this,” he agrees smoothly, making both humans stare at him in confusion. “Too complicated for me to explain. Now shut up please, and only fucking talk if it’s not distracting me, thanks.”

Not his best introduction, but it’ll do for now.

* * *

“First ‘ears over ‘ere!” a towering man bellows to them, and he groans when Lily drags both him and Severus towards the man. When the man introduces himself (“Name’s Hagrid, the gamekeeper of Hogwarts!”) and tells them they have to ride a boat, he finds himself in one with Lily and Severus.

“A boat,” he says in an unimpressed tone. Lily shoots him a look as he continues. “We’re travelling in a fucking boat when there’s carriages to ride in. With those horse things.”

“Yes, Rama, sure, like there are horses there,” she retorts, giving him a cheeky grin as he scowls at her. She’s taken to calling him that horrendous nickname, and he hates when people don’t say his full name on purpose.

Severus gives him a smirk as he sits down next to Lily on the boat, makes Kurama snort and flip him a middle finger. The boy stares at him in confusion, with him wondering if these humans ever seen a middle finger sticking out before. He learned it from Naruto, learned the meaning, but apparently these humans haven’t.

He’s not interested in Lily as a love interest, whatever Severus is thinking about. He jolts from his thoughts when the boat starts moving, and sees the castle’s lights glowing in the dark. It creates a majestic view, but Kurama only snarls.

Something that majestic is deadly, after all.

* * *

“Lupin, Remus!”

Whispers crash down and echoes around him, words growing louder and louder as he walks up and sits, the woman (Professor McGonagall, he remembers now) places the old hat on his head. Kurama startles and swears out loud when the hat speaks in his mind.

“_You’re a demon_,” the hat muses in his mind, a tone of curiosity as he feels it poking in his mind. He lets out a strong wave of hatred towards the hat, grits his teeth as he waits. “_Strong will, but fine, I’ll stop looking through your head_.”

_ Fantastic, someone who can fucking read my thoughts and let idiots know what I’m thinking_, he snarls towards the hat. _ Get going and put me in a House so I can get this over with_.

“_I don’t gossip or share memories with anyone_,” the hat says dryly, but pipes up when he mentions Houses. “_Oh yes, Houses. This is amazing, you’re cunning enough to be in Slytherin, and loyal to the bone to fit in Hufflepuff! You have the brains of a true Ravenclaw, and yet, you’re willing to die for people you love as a Gryffindor! _”

_ Fucking great, I don’t even know what you even mean, you old dusty hat_, he sarcastically thinks.

“_ ... take that back, you measly child. I am more than an old dusty hat! _”

_ Put me in a fucking House or I swear to the _ Sennin _ that I will throw you into a pit of lava! _

“_That threat is something truly like a Gryffindor, reckless yet brave to a fault! _” The hat raises its voice, clearly preparing to announce its’ choice for him. “There’s no better place for you than in GRYFFINDOR!”

The table filled with red and gold roars to life, letting out whistles and claps as they cheer for him. He sets the hat down on the chair, narrows his eyes at his new fellow students, before Lily waves him over with a large smile. The hat must have been joking, but no, he’s placed in Gryffindor.

“This is great! We’re in the same House together!” she says excitedly before he can even say a word as she forces him to sit. “I can’t wait to study and be in class!”

This is probably going to be worse than Kushina and her obsession of ramen.

* * *

“So, I’m going to get this fucking straight with you people,” Kurama says as he glares at the three boys he’s sharing a dorm with. The boy with glasses gape at him with wide eyes as the chubby one flinches and shrinks into himself. It’s the last boy that gets his attention, and Kurama has never seen dark grey eyes narrowed in concentration as he waits for Kurama to continue.

“If you prank me or my stuff, I will get you harder.” He waits for that to sink into their heads before snarling out, “If you prank someone I tolerate, remember that I will rip your fucking balls out and leave them dangling in the Great Hall for everyone to see. I can add dangling you naked in front of the Great Hall, too, as a bonus.”

“That’s a joke, right?” the boy with glasses asks hesitantly, looks at the others with a hint of desperation in his eyes. “Right?”

“If you so much bother me when I sleep, then it’ll be an issue.” Kurama smirks as he slaps a seal onto his bed, pushing chakra into it as he slips into his bed. It’s an alarm for when to wake up, especially if he wants to get extra training in.

The last boy nods in approval of his words before heading towards his own bed. He’s going to _ like _ this guy who just agreed with him.

“Now, if you make any fucking loud noises when I sleep, you’re dead. Got it?”

The chubby boy whimpers.

* * *

“... you’re a Uzumaki.”

“And you’re the father of the Hatake brat!” Kurama says sarcastically, watching dark grey eyes as he bares his teeth at him. Watches the other boy flinch from the title, before saying, “That brat missed you when I was stuck in my brat’s body, if you’re curious about that.”

“I know, Remus.”

“It’s Kurama, dumbass.”

“Sakumo,” the boy introduces himself, gives a sheepish smile. “They call me Sirius Black here, though.”

“Fantastic.” Kurama rolls his eyes at him as he takes out his notebook, a pot of ink, and a brush. He nods for the boy to sit as he proceeds to start making more seals. “Fucking fantastic, your family of these things called purebloods are hilarous.”

“Thank you?” Sirius says in a hesitant tone, sits down at the instruction given to him and watches him create. It’s slightly relieving to stop hiding the abilities he’s watched his jinchuuriki do, and use them for himself. “I was wondering… do you wanna spar during our free time? If you want to, that is.”

“Shut up and let me finish this first, Hatake.”

* * *

Whoever decided that he needs to deal with these stupid humans in a school full of magic must be someone who absolutely hates his guts. He stares up at the one who dressed up as a noble with a deadly glare. He hears Sirius’ breath hitch as he sees pale green magic rise and fall, black teeming at the edge of his vision.

The noble has ridiculously light blond hair, long enough to be tied, grey eyes that seem to be watching his every move, his robes screaming rich and green. Did he mention that this noble seems to be a Slytherin? He narrows his eyes at the gang of lackeys behind the nobles.

He _ is _ a Slytherin.

“What the fuck do you want?” Kurama finally asks, slightly miffed they decided to block his way to the Great Hall. He needs lunch, after all, since he has this pitiful human body, and humans need to replenish their energy. It’s not like before, when he only needs to sleep to regain all of his chakra.

Magic is different, it’s like chakra but so much more limited. They don’t have the same affinities as chakra, not as widespread as chakra since chakra is hidden everywhere in nature. Magic only exists in humanoid creatures, helps with a few things, and doesn’t exist how chakra does.

Though… they could have one and the same energy as chakra, though wizards can’t use chakra as it uses both physical energy and spiritual energy, yin and yang chakra. Shinobi uses chakra throughout their entire bodies, in the chakra pathway system. Wizards only the chakra pathway system in their arms, faint magic pulsing through their bodies, though they can’t use it as much.

“Move aside, mudblood, I need to speak with my... new cousin,” the blond says with a look of disgust, and Kurama raises his eyebrow, unimpressed with the way the Slytherin is trying to scare him. They all need to practice their threatening more, and that’s exactly what he tells the blond.

“... are you trying to scare me, mudblood?”

“Look, move the fuck out of the way,” Kurama snaps at the blond and grabs Sirius’ sleeve to tug him forward. “Or I’ll do something even worse than making you piss your pants off.”

It results in making the blond and his lackeys drop to the ground and gasping for air, and him dragging Sirius to the Great Hall while seething. A hand drops itself on his shoulder, and he looks towards Sirius with narrowed eyes.

“Thank you,” the boy whispers.

He’s… he won’t care, he will not care.

Not again.

* * *

“Merry Christmas!”

He’s still not used to the bizarre holidays these wizards here, because who the hell celebrates someone’s birthday when they don’t even know the person? He snorts in amusement when Professor Slughorn falls to the ground under wreaths of red flowers, nibbling on his cookie to hide his smile.

Sirius had told him that he was heading home for Christmas to see his little brother, and gave him a smile while he talked about the boy who would be coming to Hogwarts next year.

“This is bloody ridiculous,” Severus complains beside him, making Lily giggle and makes him look over to see the Slytherin slam his head onto the table. “Why can’t we just sit in our common rooms and actually sit there next to a warm fire?”

“I second that, but there’s no food,” Kurama says, shaking his head as he immediately pulses chakra into the seal on his wrist, and immediately begins stuffing the cookies into it. Hopefully he can modify the seal into a food storage seal soon so his cookies wouldn’t go bad.

He’s gained a taste for chocolate and cookies, it seems.

“Come on, Sev, it’s Christmas! We can sit next to the fireplace and open our presents after we leave the Great Hall!” Lily cries, jumps to her feet with an excited look in her eyes. “I think we can ask a Professor to deliver some food up to the tower so we can eat and do everything for a sleepover!”

“That’s a horrifying thought,” the boy retorts, though he stands and grabs Kurama. “Come on, Rama, we’re going to have a sleepover.”

“I never fucking agreed to this!” he yells, scrambling to get one last cookie as Severus and Lily drags him away. He needs those cookies, dammit! He wants those cookies, and he will get them if it’s the last thing he’ll do!

(He receives two plates of cookies when they enter the Gryffindor tower, much to the amusement of Lily and Severus.)

* * *

“Sirius Black.”

“... Severus Snape.”

“I’m Lily Evans!”

“It’s nice to meet the people who are taking care of Kurama so far. Thank you.”

“What do you mean by people taking care of me!”

* * *

“Mr Lupin, focus on how you’re going to change the match into a needle,” Professor McGonagall tells him, looking exasperated from the attempts he’s managed by now. “You need to practice your wand movements and your pronunciation of the incantation. I suggest you stop fooling around for a little after classes are over today to practice. You have exams coming up, after all. Do you understand?”

“Yes, ma’am,” Kurama grumbles, gathering his books up to look up at his teacher. Her face softens when she looks at him, before he nods at her and leaves the room, lets out a breath he didn’t notice himself holding. Sirius nervously waits for him, giving a soft smile as he nudges him.

“How did it go?”

“I am hoping to die.” He feels his chakra burning, before he allows it to travel along his skin, feels it bubbling as he rolls his eyes. He can’t help but remember the wolf thing that dared to bite him, and suffered the consequences of it. “They still think I’m a werewolf.”

Sirius jolts at the word, looks around in fear of someone hearing before looking back at him. When he first told Sirius of it, the boy insisted he stayed with Kurama if he wasn’t going to transform, and those nights of the full moon turned into monthly spars at night. 

It helps.

“Well, at least you’re getting makeup lessons since you’re forced to skip on the day of the full moon.”

“Eh, I get to fucking sleep in at least. It’s all good.”

* * *

“I’ll send you a letter from my owl when I get home,” Sirius says to Kurama, once the train stops inside the station. Lily bounces in her seat in excitement, babbling to Severus, who holds a content smile on his face. “I don’t think my mother will mind much, though she’s hates anyone who’s below our ‘statuses.’”

“Weird,” Kurama mutters, before he stands and looks out the window. He needs to practice more on his jutsu, fuinjutsu, and his chakra control. He needs to make sure he’ll be ready for next year at Hogwarts. “We’ll see.”

“Come on, Rama,” Lily yells, halfway out of their compartment with Severus following her with a roll of his eyes. “We need to ask our parents if we can visit each other during the summer!”

He’s Remus Lupin (Uzumaki Kurama), a supposed werewolf and the reincarnated Kyuubi. He can work with this.

Right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided to do a quick fanfic of Kurama being reborn as Remus Lupin, and wondered how he would react to wizards. Which will probably be in the second chapter, because he's just getting his first impression of wizards in his first year of Hogwarts.
> 
> Terms:  
_Bijuudama_ \- A jutsu that is used by a _Bijuu_'s (tailed beast's) container, or by the _Bijuu_ themselves. It's a large spinning ball of dark purple energy that has the power to disintegrate everything in its' path.  
_Sennin_ \- Sage
> 
> Enjoy!


	2. 1972-1973

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Second year of Hogwarts.

It is his second year of going to Hogwarts, and he is not excited for a year of ridiculousness again. He nods at his parents as a sign of goodbye, takes his trunk before channelling his chakra to his hands, and begins dragging it onto the train. It’s not heavy, but he doesn’t know many spells or charms to make this lighter for him.

However, it’s good practice to have better chakra control. He drags it aboard, ignoring other students’ looks as he searches for a compartment to sit in. He barely notices when someone asks him if he came from the Weasley family, whoever those people are.

“Rama!” He jolts in shock at the (despised) nickname being called, before he turns around to see Lily and Severus waving at him from a train compartment. Waves back with a roll of his eyes before he drags his trunk over to them. “Over here! We got lots of room!”

”I’m coming, for fuck’s sake,” Kurama snaps at the two as he reaches them, before forcing his trunk into an empty space underneath his seat. “Will you two calm the hell down? I don’t need you to go bouncing around just because it’s our second year at Hogwarts.”

“Oh, come on, lighten up a little!” Lily laughs, as Severus shoots him a sullen stare. He ignores the look on his face as he rummages for his book and brush, since he’s bored and fuinjutsu often ends up interesting when he’s bored. Lily peers outside again before her face lights up happily. “Oh look, there’s Sirius and someone’s with him! Hey, Sirius! Over here!”

Hears Sirius’ happy greeting to the two, and he hopes the Black ignores him in favour of shutting up and sitting down. His hopes are dashed when Sirius cries out a happy “Kurama! It’s good to see you again!”

He looks up with a glare and begins to open his mouth to snap at the boy, before his eyes glance towards a smaller boy who stares at him with narrowed eyes. He feels familiar black and red magic (_no_, his mind snarls with hate, _ chakra_-), and startles when the boy launches himself at him and screeches,

“_Kyuubi_!”

* * *

“Let me get this straight, your younger brother is Uchiha Obito, the fucking bastard who decided to try and put the entire world under a _ genjutsu_, and tried to seal me away.” Kurama glares at the tiny boy, who glares back with a hiss and turns to look at Sirius. “You have gotten be joking by this point.”

“It’s not a joke, Kurama,” Sirius says tiredly, rubbing his eyes as he looks over at the boy beside them. “And his name is Regulus here, not Obito. Believe me,” he adds when Kurama glares outright at him. “I did not know he was Obito. Even if I did know, all I remember is that he’s a sweet Uchiha boy who bothered to let Kakashi know he’s not alone.”

Regulus flinches at the name, looking down with a shadowed look that only old veterans have after they serve in a war, after they’ve killed many in the name of their cause. Kurama can’t help but flinch, too, because he’s not falling for the Sharingan again, _ never again, never, he won’t allow it, he doesn’twanttolosecontrolofhimselfagain_-

Someone nudges his shoulder, before he snaps his gaze towards Sirius, who holds his gaze with dark grey eyes. White chakra flares brightly, cools down as he tells him, “Kurama, you’ll be okay, nothing is going to happen.”

(But Sirius was never there, when he lost control and succumbed to the Sharingan and ruined Konoha, doesn’t know how he felt when he couldn’t move and could only watch helplessly when he rampaged across the village, and killed the _ Yondaime _ Hokage. He orphaned his precious _ jinchuuriki_, made him suffer under the village’s hate.

And it’s all because of this Uchiha-)

“You don’t know that,” Kurama says, watches black and red flashing in Regulus’ dark eyes, and knows he can’t trust Sirius’ younger brother yet. “You don’t fucking know that.”

* * *

“Black, Regulus!”

“Isn’t that Sirius’ little brother?” Lily asks as she stares at the boy in question, sitting there with the Sorting Hat on top of him. Kurama shrugs as he picks on his clothing, Sirius quietly sitting next to him as he nods halfheartedly. “He looks so cute!”

The Uchiha is not cute, and will never be so. He is a lying, manipulative bastard who deserves to die (though Kurama has to admit Regulus is... as cute as Naruto’s daughter, but that’s it).

“Yeah, I know. I asked Severus to look after him if he goes into Slytherin so he doesn’t have to feel alone,” Sirius admits as he looks over to Lily with a soft smile. “I hope you don’t mind if Regulus comes and joins us for our study sessions together.”

“That’s fine!” Lily says cheerfully, ignores the look that Kurama gives her. 

Regulus shifts under the hat, looking slightly uncomfortable that everyone’s staring at him, and Kurama knows most people will expect the younger Black to go into Slytherin. He knows it too, because the bastard manipulates everyone, and most Slytherins do that too. Black and red chakra turns surprised and turning considerate, before Kurama snorts, looks away.

Where would the Uchiha even go?

“HUFFLEPUFF!” the Sorting Hat screeches to the air, and his breath hitches and everyone stares at Regulus with surprised looks and glares full of venom.

“What?!” a girl’s voice shrieks, catching the attention of mostly everyone. He only slams his head on the table and groans.

This is going to be fucking _ fantastic_.

* * *

He glowers at the boy in front of him, slamming his books down in frustration on the library table in the corner as he snarls, “What is it, Uchiha?”

“Look, I don’t want to be on bad terms, okay?” Regulus says, narrows his eyes at him as he crosses his arms. He raises his eyebrow suspiciously, nodding for the Black to continue, listening to him huff. “I get it, you’re suspicious, tired of people manipulating you, and tired of the Uchiha Clan.”

“Oh, isn’t this a fucking surprise,” he drawls, before he feels anger, hatred, and murder intent lash out in the form of _ sakki_, and he pushes it towards the boy. Regulus barely flinches, lifts his chin to meet him eye to eyes as he crosses his arms. Damn, this Uchiha knows how to stand his ground against a _ Bijuu_’s _ sakki _ when in a defenseless state. “A Uchiha knowing all about manipulation.”

His voice lowers into a snarl, “You don’t know how much trouble you’ve _ caused _ me, Uchiha.”

“You think I don’t know that?” Regulus hisses at him, before slamming a hand down on the table. “I got manipulated as much as you, _ Kyuubi_, and I’m only human. I got manipulated by Madara and Black Zetsu, you know, and I’ve gotten killed to protect all of you when we were fighting Kaguya after I got free from their manipulations. I got manipulated to put people into a state where they would dream of happy lives and get their chakra drained!”

Regulus’ voice rises into a shout, before he closes his mouth into a thin line. “I’m just suggesting a truce, _ Kyuubi_. For now.”

“I’m watching you, Uchiha. I’ll kill you if you make the wrong move.”

* * *

“Lazy asses,” Kurama snarls as he waves his wand and shoots out a jinx as he dodges a couple of spells. Cries of outrage echo behind him as he shoots off into an empty hallway, channels his chakra to his feet before sticking to the wall and pulling himself up.

If all Wizards seem to like depending on their magic for everything, it’s no wonder they aren’t physically fit to do anything, let alone even battle him. Hell, even the food here is so damn disgusting (he doesn’t bother to eat it, after seeing how much Wizards eat during each meal, fattening each and every one of them. Sirius seems to agree with him).

He stays close to the ceiling, watching the Slytherins burst into the hallway and shouting for him. “Bloody Gryffindor!” one of them yells, and he rolls his eyes. Watches them leave after a few minutes of fruitless searching, before he drops down and turns to meet black eyes.

“Oh, hi,” Kurama says lamely as Severus crosses his arms.

“You dropped from the ceiling,” he says as a greeting instead, pointing up to the ceiling.

“Does it fucking matter?”

“_You dropped from the ceiling_,” Severus hisses in response.

“... and?”

(He pretends to ignore Severus’ screech, before he takes a breath and resolves to hide the secret of shinobi, and never reveal it to the wrong hands.)

* * *

“Regulus!” Lily calls out, making Kurama groan as Sirius pats his shoulder, knowing how annoying it is to be with the Black (is it really his fault that he can’t trust those eyes, knowing they can make him lose control? That they can take everything away from him? He doesn’t- he can’t trust those eyes-).

“Hi,” Regulus says grumpily, flopping down on the chair across from Lily, just as Severus strolls in and takes a seat next to Lily. “How’s it going?”

“It was fun making potions with Professor Slughorn!” Lily says excitedly, Severus grunting in agreement as he places large tomes in front of him. Regulus stares at her in horror, shaking his head rapidly as he all but shoves his potion textbooks in front of him.

“No, it is not!”

“Aren’t those Dark magic?” Sirius asks Severus carefully, making the boy look up and nod slowly. He ignores all of them, concentrating on perfecting his _ fuinjutsu_, feels his mind wandering off as he carefully finishes the seal.

Kurama can barely pay attention to the conversations around him. He doesn’t understand the need for all of the lessons for magic, doesn’t know why he should even bother keeping this knowledge when he has the forest to live in. He doesn’t need a job like Wizards do, all he needs is to live.

He’s not greedy for money, but it wouldn’t hurt to make some for his parents (he’s over thousands of years of age, possessions doesn’t matter by this point).

“Rama, what are you doing?” Lily’s voice jolts him out of his thoughts, making him look over at the red-haired girl (_Uzumaki_, his mind snarls) and he shrugs at her.

“Something.”

* * *

“Hi,” says the boy with glasses hesitantly, with the chubby boy behind him, who’s chewing his bottom lip nervously.

Kurama glances up to them from the cushion, leaning against Sirius as he rolled his eyes. Sirius smiles up at them, before motioning them to sit. “Hi,” he greets warmly (Kurama wishes that the Black would stop being so fucking nice. The world isn’t nice at all). “Sit down.”

“Uh… sure? My name is James,” the glasses boy adds after a pause, sitting down in front of them, as the chubby boy still stands. “That’s Peter.”

Peter looks like a wimp, and about to ruin his pants.

He says as much.

“Kurama!” Sirius scolds, turning his head to glare at him as Peter whimpers and immediately sits down to avoid his wrath. He doesn’t care though, because these two weren’t any of his business, and he didn’t want to deal with them. “Don’t say that!”

“It’s not my fault that he is,” he snaps back, turning his head to the side to avoid looking at Sirius’ expression. Peter’s magic shrinks into itself, but something about it makes him pause, take a look at it more closely. Sirius grabs his attention again.

“It does not mean you had to say it!”

“So you agree with me!”

Needless to say, James and Peter gets introduced to their little group and they continue on.

* * *

“I am not a fucking wolf with rabies!” Kurama roars at the senile old man when he directs him to the Shrieking Shack. Dumbledore only smiles as if _ he’s _ the one who’s senile, before ushering him in. “Are you even listening to me, you fucking old man?”

“You cannot harm other students if you’re transformed in Hogwarts,” Dumbledore gently reminds him, making him snarl angrily as he’s forced into the broken-down room. The old man gives him a heart-broken smile before closing the door gently.

He stares angrily at the ruined bed, before flopping down on it. Maybe it would be a good time to think while waiting for Sirius’ sorry ass to show up so they can spar. He closes his eyes and sees shining blue eyes staring at him, a large grin spreading across a tanned face, and a loud laugh that echoes in his mind.

_ Naruto_.

He hasn’t thought about him in a while. Not since he’s met Sirius, Lily, Severus, and the others. Hell, even the Uchiha made him forget. He’s so busy with his life, that he’s forgotten what it feels like when he thinks about Naruto.

It’s bittersweet to remember Naruto, who had been his first friend, his partner, and the second to show trust in him after his father.

He feels foreign magic and Sirius’ chakra, confused as to why they seem so familiar to him when it’s usually only him and Sirius on these full moon nights of hell.

His eyes flash open to find Lily, Regulus, and Severus standing with Sirius, as well as James and Peter. “What the fuck?” he whispers, before glaring at the older Black, hearing his tone bordering on dangerous territories. “I thought this was just us?”

“They found me sneaking out,” Sirius murmurs.

“What’s going on?” they all demand, and he has to sit them down to tell them the entire damn story.

* * *

“I’m not teaching you anything because it’ll kill you,” Sirius explains to James patiently as he waits for the boy to calm down. Kurama can’t help but snort when James starts complaining about it, because these kids were way too old to start learning chakra by now.

“Why the bloody hell not?” James demands, crossing his arms.

“Because,” Kurama says lazily, causing the other two boys to snap their attention to him. “You’re too old by now to start even developing chakra. If you were younger, let’s say around six, you’d be able to do what we do. However, since you’re not that active and rely on your wands, that and how old you are, it can kill you due to how much magic or chakra it can cost your body.”

“You need magic circulating around your body to live, just as we need chakra to even move our bodies. However, if you deplete your storage of magic just to even use one of our so-called ‘spells,’ you can die.” He feels his lips curl into a smirk. “Painfully.”

“That’s why we can’t teach you,” Sirius explains softly. “But we can teach you how to use _ taijutsu_.”

“Tai what?”

Kurama just curses under his breath.

* * *

Dark magic rises and falls like waves when he concentrates, while the students and teachers’ chakra storm his senses. The Dark magic lures him closer, reminding him of the power he possesses, and the hatred he once possessed. He’s reminded of the times he had tried to lure Naruto into his claws, his trap, and ended up as someone who Naruto can use chakra from.

_ Take revenge_, the magic hisses in his mind and he wonders if the wolf thing who bitten him has something to do with this. _ Take revenge on those who have wronged you. Close your eyes and take _ ** _it_**_. _

... they had to be joking, he decided as he opens his eyes to a familiar sewer system, hears water dripping from the top. He feels his chakra surging forth and surrounding him and filling his senses as he feels himself growing bigger.

He looks down to see familiar reddish-orange paws and his tails whipping about, before he starts walking forward. Wills the sewer system to grow bigger, to accommodate his new size as he looks around, curious to see if anything changed. But... he pauses, looks down at the water as he narrows his eyes.

The water. It’s all black and muddy, and he sniffs it and smells hatred and fear. Just like when he inhabited his three _ jinchuuriki_. He growls and moves forward, feels the hatred grow stronger as he heads in. This is his mind, so he expects hatred to be there, but not… in the centre of his mind.

Or... 

He caged the hatred, or the Dark magic that pulses through him. It makes him throw his head back and laugh.

Well... isn’t this interesting?

* * *

“We should have nicknames for each other,” James says when they all squeeze into a single compartment, and Kurama ends up sharing a seat with Sirius. _ Of course nicknames, this always has to be about nicknames and friends_, he snarls in his mind, leaning back on his chair.

“And what do you have in mind, Potter?” Severus drawls, opening his book.

“I was thinking about naming you Sal, after Salazar Slytherin,” the boy with glasses admits, and ignores Severus staring at him. “And Lily would be... Doe?”

“Stupid name for Lily, she deserves something better than _ that _,” Regulus says.

“I don’t know! What do you guys think?”

“Something that relates to our personalities?” Sirius wonders, looking over to Kurama with this really, really strange smile that sends his heart stopping. “Kurama? What do you think?”

“You are not fucking calling me _ Kyuubi_,” he tells them all, allowing his tone to sound threatening, because he cannot deal with that name _ ever _. “I will personally rip your fucking limbs apart and hang them on your neighbours’ trees. Or where the wolves will get you.”

James swallows before leaning back as if to stay away from him. Good. The kid needs to learn what’s personal. “On second thought, we can do this next year.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This concludes the second year of Hogwarts for Kurama! Regulus IS Uchiha Obito, and he is a Hufflepuff to the core. Of course, no one in Hogwarts expected that, and the gang finds out the shinobi's little backstory. Meanwhile, I'd like to point out that Kurama is someone who gives no shit in this story and is absolutely willing to threaten everyone.
> 
> That, and I have a headcanon that Kurama is scared of losing control to the _Sharingan_.
> 
> Cheers for the Wolfstar ship!
> 
> Terms:  
_Kyuubi_ \- Nine in Japanese; the name shinobi called Kurama as a _Bijuu_.  
_Genjutsu_ \- Jutsu for sensory illusions.  
_Yondaime_ \- Fourth.  
_Jinchuuriki_ \- Human sacrifices; containers for the _Bijuu_.  
_Sakki_ \- Killing intent.  
_Bijuu_ \- Tailed-beasts.  
_Fuinjutsu_ \- Sealing jutsu.
> 
> Enjoy!


	3. 1973-1974

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Third year of Hogwarts to the summer of 1974.

“I swear to the _ Sennin_, if you lay even one fucking finger on me, I will murder you,” Kurama hisses, pointing towards Regulus as Sirius takes charge of their trunks. They board the train to find an empty compartment, with Kurama continuing to sprout threats. “I will tear you apart limb by fucking limb, and I will make sure that you will be fed your fucking liver!”

“Isn’t that too harsh?” Sirius questions when he pushes open the door, revealing Lily and Severus looking up from their books to see who entered. The older Black beams happily. “Oh, Lily! Severus! It’s good to see you both!”

“It’s not harsh, it’s actually a good threat, and I deserve it,” Regulus says when he takes a seat next to Severus, giving the other two a soft smile. “How have you two been?”

Lily grins at them, waving around to the seats as she motions them to sit. “Rama! Sirius, Regulus! Me and Severus were waiting for you both, and we had a great time! What about you guys? Did you have fun?” she asks, before brightening. “Did you guys train your… your cha-ra?”

They all stare at her. “Your pronunciation isn’t bad,” Sirius says in an impressed tone, making Kurama snort. He still doesn’t know how to feel about Wizards, but at least there are some that he can actually tolerate. More or less.

They’re still lazy bastards.

“It’s chakra, with a k.” Regulus pauses for a little, before he places a thoughtful look on his face and Kurama is wary of that look- “How do we pronounce chakra? I thought it was always how we say it.”

“... good question.”

“Just don’t question it,” Kurama snaps.

* * *

He opens his eyes tiredly when a scream echoes in their dorm, before he snarls, “Shut the hell up or I’ll murder you!”

The scream ceases to a halt, and he looks over to see Peter shakily pointing to something in the middle of the dorm room. Kurama takes a long sniff of the air and chokes, because his senses and mind hisses in wariness (_wolf, kill the wolf, kill it, ittookeverythingawaytakeitba-_).

“Bloody hell, it’s an actual werewolf!” James shrieks, scrambling for his glasses and his wand as he lets out a groan. He doesn’t want to deal with wolves again, not after he’s been bitten by one. He doesn’t want to be the one who has to be the one in charge and the _ only _ one who has _ common sense_.

“Kill it!” Peter screams.

Kurama wants to tear all of them apart right now. Werewolves stand on two legs, this wolf had four legs. His fellow Gryffindors _ cannot _ be _ this _ stupid.

The wolf’s magic ripples familiarly, and that’s when Kurama shoots up and snarls, “Fucking hell, Hatake, I will fucking throttle you if you don’t transform back right now! Stop scaring the wimps and let me go the hell to sleep!”

Twisting back into himself, Sirius has a sheepish look on his face. “Sorry, Kurama,” he apologizes softly, making him growl at him. “I was figuring out how to become an animagus over the summer, so I thought I could practice here.”

He just... _ am I the only one with common sense here in this stupid school?_

* * *

“Kurama…”

“What is it now, wimps?”

“Are you seriously calling us that?” James demands, glasses nearly falling from the bridge of his nose as he glares at Kurama. He only smirks in return, placing a spoonful of those delicious Pixie Puffs into his mouth, eyeing the glasses boy. “Okay, fine but that’s not the point, though!”

He throws a roll of paper at Kurama, makes him catch and unroll it to see a sinister sneer across... a bald man’s face with red eyes? He scans the paper, making note of the so-called ‘Death Eaters’ and someone called ‘Voldemort.’ Who decided that this guy’s name should be Voldemort?

“That is the most stupidest name I’ve ever heard,” he scoffs, throwing the paper back at James. “I mean, Voldemort? Really?” He ignores the gasps around him. “What kind of name is that? The best we can call him is Moldy, like fucking hell.”

“His name means ‘to fly’ in French,” Sirius offers the useless information.

Kurama waves it off. “That’s still so stupid. What is he going to do to us? Rule us? Kill us? Make us obey him? Sorry, asshole, but we can move out of this country, too.”

“Are you trying to kill us?” James asks in disbelief.

“I’m stating the obvious, idiot. Why should we be afraid of speaking someone’s name?”

(He pretends to ignore the way Slytherin is whispering, and how Peter looks nervous. He pretends to ignore the way Professor McGonagall nods in approval. He pretends to ignore the way Dumbledore looks a little wary and impressed.

He pretends to ignore Dark magic grabbing at him and hissing him to _ join_.)

* * *

He stares at the familiar man in front of him, narrowing his eyes as he feels one of his hands curl into fists, and his other hand around his cookies. It’s only Christmas break, and someone wants to see him. “Well, bastard, thanks for showing up when my parents are about to have a wonderful Christmas with me,” he says sarcastically. “What can I do for you?”

Remembers when this man threatened Sirius, and his hackles rise in wariness.

“You’re a werewolf, aren’t you?” the blond asks, ignores the way Kurama’s staring at him. Well, this man seems to like going straight to the point.

“I’m gonna make this clear, I’m not a fucking wolf with rabies, and either am I gonna be interested in whatever you’re gonna be offering me,” he adds when the man opens his mouth. “I’m not something you can fucking use like a toy.”

He stands up, before glancing towards the man. Readies himself when the man seems to prepare himself to attack, before he hears a hiss behind him and his chakra flares in a protective manner. Kurama turns around to face the man with narrowed dark red eyes.

_ Chakra can defend me... interesting. _

“Allow me to show you why I’m called a demon back then,” he growls, slapping a seal to silence the room, to allow no one to hear what he’s about to say. He advances on the blond, lips peeling back to reveal sharp teeth. “Why I can get you killed so easily with just a flare of my so-called ‘magic’...”

(He has the blond screaming and running after a few minutes alone, making him imagine his painful death. It doesn’t matter to him if the blond reports this incident to someone. It won’t work, especially with the memory seal he placed on him.

Too bad.)

* * *

“Rama?” Lyall asks softly as he faces him. His father is understandable, and he knows his father means best. It reminds him of Naruto, Minato, and how well they have gotten along with each other. “Your mother and I have a present for you.”

“Do you now?” he says, raising an eyebrow in amusement as his father barks out a laugh.

“Yes, I do.” The man hands him a small box before he winks at him. “We got those books just for you, since we both thought you might be interested. They’re shrunk down to fit in that box and your pocket so you can read it anytime,” his father adds, carefully watching him.

Kurama opens the box to see his parents’ handwriting on a note, feels his eyes water at the sight. Damn human bodies, always crying when he doesn’t want to cry.

_ To our son_, the note reads, _ we hope that you’ll enjoy these books and treasure them deeply forever. We love you. _

(His father doesn’t say anything when Kurama gives him a tight hug and a sob, only giving a small grin to him. His mother only smiles when he hugs her, too, kissing his forehead.

He can’t lose them, they mean too much to him now. Damn Naruto and his emotional tendencies because he’s getting influenced by that little brat.)

* * *

“Oi! We should think of nicknames!” James hollers as he joins them under the tree shade. Lily raises her eyebrow at him, as Regulus looks skeptically at him again. “I’m serious! If we’re gonna stick together, we need nicknames for each other so no one will know!”

“Pray to tell, what nicknames have you thought to give us now,” Severus drawls as he walks over and plops down next to Lily. “Because the last one you gave to Lily was horrendous and not thoughtful at all.”

Kurama snorts at that.

“I disagree with the idea of making us into a group, and go straight for the nicknames instead,” Regulus snaps, looking absolutely horrified by the fact that they should name themselves. Sirius shrugs, leaning against Kurama as he pats his brother’s shoulder.

(He pretends to ignore the fact that he leans back on Sirius, and ignores the snickers around them.)

“I have one for myself!” Lily cries, grabbing everyone’s attention. “I’m gonna be Avis, and you are not gonna stop me from having that!”

“I can’t believe all of you,” Regulus groans, leaning back on the tree as he stares at them. He internally agrees with the Uchiha, because why would they want to give each other nicknames when they had their own? At least Naruto called him ‘furball’ or his actual name. “You want us to each have a nickname?”

“I’ll be Strig,” Severus volunteers.

“Ookami after my Animagus form,” Sirius murmurs.

“Do not fucking look at me like that,” Kurama snaps at them all when they look at him. “No!”

“His nickname is Youko,” Sirius simply tells them, and ignores Kurama’s scream of rage.

* * *

He dreams of fire and chakra when Naruto faced the Uchiha in battle, getting drained of chakra as he was sealed away and creating the _ Juubi_. He dreams of the flames and destruction surrounding them when Madara called upon the _ Mugen Tsukuyomi_. He dreams of Naruto battling Sasuke in one final match.

He dreams of his brothers and sisters being sealed away, and he cannot feel more pain than to listen to their screams for help. He dreams of getting drained away again when Naruto was kidnapped by the members of Kaguya’s Clan from the moon. He dreams of Naruto whispering and petting his fur as he slowly withered away.

He dreams how someone’s magic pokes in his head and dives deep, trying to find his memories inside him. His eyes slowly opens to the dark of his dorm room, and he listens to the soft snores of his fellow Gryffindors, and shuffling of fabric rubbing against each other.

He can still feel the traces of someone trying to poke through his head. Kurama flares his chakra once, before he allows his chakra to greedily descend down on traces of magic and _ feels_. Dark magic shifts in his mind, sinking into the water of the sewer system when he closes his eyes and drops down in there as his old form.

“_Join us_,” the magic hisses as he pads down the sewer. “_Join us! Be free! _”

“Like hell,” Kurama mutters as he flares his chakra, chuckles darkly when the Dark magic runs and screams and flees when his chakra comes near.

(He wakes up the next morning to Sirius asking if he’s alright.

He’s not, but it’s how it’ll always be.)

* * *

“I’m a stupid dog like Bakashi,” is the first thing that comes out of Regulus’ mouth when they meet that morning. Sirius blinks at him, as Kurama struggles to wrap his mind around the Hatake brat being called ‘Bakashi,’ before he roars out in laughter.

Bakashi! He needs to find a reincarnation of Naruto and tell him this!

“Say what?” Sirius says dumbly as Kurama leans against the wall, wheezing breathlessly while laughter has him shaking. “What did you just call my son?”

“Bakashi,” Regulus spats out, closing his eyes before he pinches the bridge of his nose. “I’m a dog like him, the fucking bastard!”

“... dog?”

“You see, it’s something called turning into an Animagus, _ dear brother of mine_…”

“Are you trying to insult my Clan’s summons?” Sirius asks warily, his hand going to the non-existent pouch that he doesn’t have. He’s enjoying the way the brothers are acting, that’s for sure. He hasn’t had this kind of entertainment in a while.

“Trying not to,” Regulus mutters, before he raises his tone. Kurama can feel his chakra in a turmoil, and wonders what the Uchiha is hiding _ now_. “But I’m a dog like him, Sirius! A dog like that bastard! How can people do this to me?”

“Maybe if you didn’t insult the dogs, it wouldn’t be as bad.”

Kurama ignores the way Regulus lunges at Sirius, before he grabs Sirius’ hand and runs with him and away from the Uchiha.

(He ignores the way Sirius blushes from his touch, too. He also ignores the way his face feels like heating up like he touches Sirius.

Kurama doesn’t know this emotion. Nope. Not at all.)

* * *

The door slams open with a loud _ bang_, making him look up from his book, feels his eyes narrowing from the sight of masked people at the door. Their magic tells of the Dark magic he’s been feeling for months now, and their scent reeks of blood. His father looks up in wariness, and before anyone could say something, shoots off an offensive spell.

He feels his father’s magic rippling with rage, fear, worry, hatred, guilt (_guiltyguiltyguilty_, his mind chants), and feels his father’s hand grab his own. Hears the hisses of the masked people, and loud bangs of spells shooting behind them.

“Father?” he questions with a growl, ignores the way his father looks at him with worry, before he snaps, “What’s going on?”

“Rama, you have to run,” Lyall murmurs when they lock themselves into his bedroom, his mother placing his clothes into his closet. She furrows her brows at the sight of them, before flinching at the noise behind the door. His father points his wand at the door, mutters an incantation Kurama is unfamiliar with, and the door is suddenly barricaded with so much magic- “Grab your pack, and get all your things. We only have a few minutes.”

It’s easy, since he never had too many things, and he’s easily stored it all in the never-ending bag that his parents gave him. “Father, Mother, what are they doing here?” he asks, all but shoving his clothes into his bag and all of his supplies, books, money. His father only shrinks his trunk and drops it into the bag.

“Father?”

“_Portus_,” his father snaps out, touching a flat rock and it glows bright blue before settling into its’ normal state again. “Hold onto this, Rama. Hope, you hold onto it, too.”

“_Bombarda Maxima_!” a voice shrieks outside, and a large _ bang _ echoes.

The house shakes.

“Lyall,” his mother begins, and his father gives her a look. Kurama doesn’t know whether to feel worried or not, because those people broke into his house and are after his family. What did they do to them, anyways? “You have to come with us!”

“I’m distracting them,” is the reply.

Kurama’s heart stops, because he’s not losing one of his precious people again, _ never again, not again, don’t go, you can’t go, I need you, IneedyouIloveyoudon’tgoIloveyousomuch- _

The door blasts off its hinges, distracting him from his thoughts, as it lands down with a _ thud _ as the masked people storm his room. Lyall shoots off a stunning spell at one of them, though they expertly block it. Fear courses through him as he yells.

“Father, don’t!” he screams, holding onto the stone tightly as his mother hugs him tightly. Spells shoot off randomly in every direction. “Don’t! Come with us, please!”

His father turns towards him for a second, mouthing words to him with a small smile. He remembers the words being mouthed, horror dawning on him. “_Avada Kedavra_!” a voice screams behind the man, green light silhouetting his father before he falls.

Kurama barely registers his mother pushing him behind her, before he looks up and sees her smiling softly down at him. His breath is caught in his throat as she kisses his forehead and runs her hand through his hair as the masked people come closer. “Mother, mom, don’t,” he tries. “Mom!”

“I’m sorry, sweetie, but I have to protect you,” she whispers, before she pushes him back with a shove and faces the masked with tense shoulders. She catches his eyes before soft brown eyes crinkle and she says, “I love you, Remus Lupin. Kurama. My son. Be strong!”

Something tugs at his navel, and Kurama stares helplessly when a curse hits his mother, making her fall like his father. Magic stills in the air, and they swarm him, swarming his senses. The world spins, someone’s hand reaching out to him, and he’s suddenly surrounded by several people.

Gasps of horror and fear enter his ears, magic continuing to swarm his senses as he feels hands grab at him and tug him away. He feels his breaths coming in short gasps for air, colours merging in his vision. Words are heard, but he can barely understand them.

He’s supposed to be the _ Kyuubi_, a _ Bijuu_, a fox. He’s not supposed to be weak! He’s not supposed to lose his precious people again. He’s not supposed to forget that he has chakra and he can defend himself. He’s not… _ I’m not... _

He only remembers what his parents told him before he was sent here.

_ “I love you.” _

_ “I love you, Remus Lupin. Kurama. My son. Stay strong!” _

Kurama screams.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, Sirius finds out his Animagus form is a wolf. I had a headcanon that the Hatake Clan are related to canines, and Sakumo's summons are wolves, which fit this perfectly. Obito's Animagus form is a dog, just like Padfoot in canon, which means yes, his nickname will be Padfoot (but Kurama will continue calling him Uchiha or Obito instead). 
> 
> Everyone's nicknames are from canon, or a Latin word. Kurama's parents die... or maybe not! I'll let you speculate until the next chapter!
> 
> Terms:  
_Sennin_ \- Sage.  
_Juubi_ \- Ten-Tailed Beast.  
_Mugen Tsukuyomi_ \- Infinite Tsukuyomi.  
_Kyuubi_ \- Nine-Tailed Beast.  
_Bijuu_ \- Tailed Beast(s).
> 
> Enjoy!


	4. 1974-1975

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Near the end of summer of 1974 and fourth year of Hogwarts.

He wakes up panting, feels his eyes wide open and blurring with something wet in his eyes. He closes them and feels the tears dripping down from his eyes and down his cheeks. “Fuck,” he mutters, rolls out of bed as he walks out of the room he’s currently sleeping in.

Lily is kind enough to offer him somewhere to stay in her house, after losing his parents. He lost some of his precious people, and he didn’t think about using jutsu to help them, save them, to spare them from their fate. He lost the people who cares most about him, after Naruto, after the _ Sennin _ who created him and his siblings.

“I lost them,” he mutters to himself, repeats the chant in his head as he walks down the stairs. He lost them, he lost them, _ lostlostlostthey’reallgone_\- he needs to protect the people left in his life. He needs to get stronger, to protect them, to not let them go to the same fate.

Kurama reaches the kitchen, and blinks in surprise when he sees Lily’s older sister sitting there at the table. Lily never mentions her sister too much (then again, she’s much closer with Severus), but he’s too tired and angry to care if she knows that he’s there. He needs something to eat and drink.

“Hey,” he says, watching the girl’s eyes flicker to him and narrow at him. “You know where the cups are?”

“Top pantry on the left of the sink,” she answers, pointing to the direction where the cups are. “If you’re going to use magic here, don’t do it when I’m around.”

Her blunt tone makes him snort, shakes his head as he makes his way to where the cups are. “Please, I’m not as lazy to wave my wand around and use it to bring out a damn cup that you can just walk over to grab.”

“Are you?” Lily’s sister asks darkly. “I bet your parents fawn over you and treat like you’re the better one than your sibling.”

His hand stops from reaching the cup, before Kurama turns towards her with a snarl. “My parents are dead,” he growls, watches the girl stiffen at the words. He feels her emotions become guilt, anger, before they seal away from him. Interesting. “Don’t take your anger out on me about what you and your sister is having. Discuss it with her, for fuck’s sake.”

The emotions are back (_ImissherIwantmysisterback_-), and he turns to grab the cup again. He fills it up with water, gulping it down, feels the water’s coldness down his throat. Kurama hears his own stomach growl, and turns to the girl. She has a thoughtful expression on her face, though it turns neutral when he stares at her.

“You have cookies? I’m starving.”

* * *

“My sister haven’t seen me off since forever,” Lily comments, waves back at the girl who sees them all off. Severus grunts, lifting his trunk with a quick feather-light charm, before doing the same to their trunks. “I wonder what happened?”

“I don’t give a shit,” Kurama grunts, drags the trunk onboard as he breathes slowly. His parents used to say goodbye to him with a silly wave and a smile, even if he didn’t say anything. He swallows a lump in his throat (_I am the embodiment of hatred_, his mind hisses, _ I don’t cry!_) and heads to an empty compartment.

“Rama, you’re welcome to stay with my family if you don’t have anywhere else to go,” Lily offers quietly to him.

He shakes his head, looks away from her. “I’m fine,” he growls, shrugging her concern off. He doesn’t need anyone’s help. He can’t let them get dragged into his mess. “I’ll just go find a small house that I don’t need to pay rent for, and I’ll be fine.”

He’ll be fine.

_ I’ll be fine. _

The red-haired girl looks at him in disbelief, before forcing their trunks to go under their seats, taking the seat next to the window. Severus slides in after her, giving Kurama a worried look as he pulls out a book. Kurama doesn’t look at them, taking out his brush, ink, and notepad, and begins drawing seals.

It isn’t until a few minutes later Sirius bursts into their compartment, and looks around frantically, before he looks up. The older Black lunges at him, draws him into a tight hug, and he sees Regulus awkwardly standing at the door as Sirius sobs. Sees Lily and Severus staring at them with wide eyes.

He stays still, feels his eyes widen as Sirius seems to hug him tighter. He can feel white chakra rippling in emotion, fear, relief, pain, joy, they’re all coursing inside the Black, and he can’t help but feel overwhelmed. He hasn’t had anyone worry so much about him _ in so long_-

“You’re okay,” Sirius breathes in his ear and he shivers from the heat of it, feels his heart beating wildly all of a sudden. “_You’re okay_.”

Kurama can’t help but squeeze his eyes shut, bring his arms around Sirius in an awkward hug, and breaks down crying.

* * *

“Stop fretting over me,” he snaps at Sirius, his throat sore from screaming and crying and yelling all at the same time, and feels a few more tears dropping down. “I get you’re fucking worried, but can I at least eat in peace?”

Sirius draws back for a bit, worry etching at every part of his face before he nods and turns back to his own meal. He groans in frustration, stabbing the fork into his meat pie, before he reaches out to grab a cookie to nibble on. They’re his comfort food now, and he needs some to comfort himself (at least, that’s what he thinks comfort food is).

“Don’t be mean, Rama,” Lily scolds at him, halfheartedly picking at her food. He doesn’t say anything, bites into the cookie to not say anything. “Sirius is only helping you.”

“Except he doesn’t want to talk,” James points out, shoving a baked potato into his mouth and spews out bits of it out of his mouth. They all lean back to avoid getting hit.

“You’re so disgusting, James!” Lily cries.

“Aw, but Lily!” the boy whines.

He feels red magic stepping closer to him, before he turns to see Professor McGonagall nearing him with a look that has him on the edge. The others stop talking (or in Peter’s case, stop looking at the others) and stare at the Professor, as she stops next to him.

“Mister Lupin,” she says, her face passive, but Kurama can feel her magic being worried, fearing for him, anger at someone, guilt, and relief. It’s too much, and he looks away, not willing to have another person apologize for the demise of his parents. “If you can with me, please.”

Glancing at the others, he sees them stiffening, before he shakes his head and stands up, moving to follow his Transfiguration Professor and feels a hand grasping at his wrist. Sirius looks at him, a guarded look in his eyes, but he can _ feel _ him; worry, fear, and-

He can’t tell what the last emotion is.

“I’ll be fine,” he tells the Black, but Sirius only stands up and moves to follow him. “What the fuck do you think you’re doing, you dumbass?”

“I’m coming with you,” he says simply.

“No.”

“Yes.”

(He lets Sirius come with him afterwards, and feels his face heat up when Sirius moves closer, brushing their shoulders together. What is _ wrong _ with this human body?)

* * *

_ Bright green lights flashes before him, before he sees his parents in front of him and they hold a dead look in their eyes, like when Naruto’s eyes held death as he got broken down so many times when the villagers push him down. He reaches for them, slightly afraid for what is about to happen and his hand reaches through them. _

_ Jerks his hand back in shock when they fade away in ashes, getting startled when he hears his mother’s voice. “You didn’t save us!” her voice screams in his ear, makes him hiss in pain as he backs away. “Why didn’t you save us? Why didn’t you save us?” _

_ He feels a hand around his ankle, and he looks down to see his father looking back up at him with the dead look he’s seen back in his room before he was spiralled away. His father’s eyes turn into Sharingan eyes, and he sees Madara smiling cruelly as red and black swarms his vision. _

_ Real fear courses through him, squeezing his heart tightly as he tries to breathe. None of this is real, Madara is gone, his parents love him, _ he’s not going to break down, not going to lose control, notagainnotagaindon’t _ you _dare-

_ “Kurama! Wake up!” Naruto’s voice screams and he turns- just in time to see his precious partner’s Uchiha push his hand through Naruto’s body with the Hatake brat’s _Chidori_. He opens his mouth to scream Naruto’s name when red spills from his _ jinchuuriki_’s mouth and- _

“Kurama!” Sirius’ voice shouts instead, and he shoots up from his bed, bumping heads with someone. He lets out a groan, opening his eyes to see the said boy standing up, holding his head with a pained smile as he smiles at Kurama. “Glad you’re finally awake.”

“What the fuck did you do?” he asks with a growl, rubbing his head with a hiss. Kurama looks around, seeing the other two boys staring at them with wide eyes. “What did I fucking do?”

“You were moving around, and I thought you had a nightmare,” the Black says, before giving him a tight hug and a quick pat on the head. “I’ll be here if you want to talk about it.”

He moves towards his bed, and Kurama stares after him, barely noticing his hand moving to where Sirius touched him on his head. He ignores the snickers around him, slightly surprised the boy would offer him comfort.

(Kurama doesn’t understand why Sirius keeps hugging him, but why he doesn’t complain about the human touching him, he doesn’t know. He hasn’t called the people hanging around him humans in a long time.

Is this what Naruto meant, by being human?)

* * *

A soft _ thud _ of a kunai hits a practice target, Kurama narrowing his eyes as he focuses his chakra flowing through the kunai he’s holding. He needs to practice more, especially to defend himself, to prevent himself to be weak again, to protect his _ precious ones _ (what Naruto had once said).

“Kurama,” Sirius says softly behind him, making him turn towards the boy and he tilts his head as a gesture for him to continue. The moonlight shines down on his face, making it seem innocent, makes it seem like Sirius doesn’t know what _ war _ is, doesn’t know how it _ feels _ to lose everything-

“Stop, you’re going to tire yourself out. We need to get back to our rooms-”

He falls silent when Kurama sends a wave of _ sakki _ towards him, bares a snarl at him as he swings the kunai around. “You don’t fucking get it, do you,” he growls, moving towards the Black, avoiding the roots of large trees as he lightly jumps over them. “You didn’t lose _ everything_!”

Sirius doesn’t say anything, dark grey eyes hardening as he stands his ground against him. “I lost everything, too,” he simply says, and makes him freeze. He continues, Kurama tightening his grip on the kunai in his hand.

“I lost my reputation as a fearsome Konoha shinobi. I lost the respect I tried so hard to gain. I lost people I considered my friends. _ I lost my son because he didn’t want anything to do with me_! And that was all because I saved my comrades and abandoned my mission!”

White chakra flickers in anger, as Sirius snaps, “Just because I might not know what you lost doesn’t mean I don’t know the damn feeling!”

His hands curls into fists as the Black spins around on his heels and walks off, and his chest tightens as he tries to breathe again. _ I lost everything, too_, his words repeat in his mind as he stands alone in the forest. Kurama throws a kunai at a target with a yell of frustration, watches it miss his target.

(He wakes up the next morning and Sirius is back to normal.

Kurama can tell his cheerful personality is fake.

He doesn’t push it.)

* * *

“Rama!” Lily shrieks, catches his attention as she runs through the hallways and trips. He curses, jumping forward to catch the girl, and ignores the looks Severus and James give him. He’s not interested in the damn girl. “Thanks for catching me, but that’s not the point! Have you ever thought about Quidditch?”

He blinks in confusion, then remembers the games of people riding on flying broomsticks and the amount of throwing balls, dodges of a flying ball that can give a concussion, and basically ramming into other people with a ball in hand.

He wants to hurt something or someone after that incident with Sirius, and he wants to avoid the other boy as much as possible, to stop thinking so much about him. He needs a distraction and the opportunity that Lily is presenting him is the solution. Giving people concussions probably convinces him.

Kurama gives a wide smirk.

The two boys blauch, suddenly looking terrified. “That sounds fucking _ wonderful_,” he tells Lily, a widening smile full of _ teeth _ on his lips. Lily grins back, looking rather delighted as she tugs on his arm. “Where do I sign up?”

“Just join in on practice tomorrow,” Lily tells him sweetly, a vicious smile matching his own as she laughs. “You can borrow the extra broom that I brought along with me. Sev and James gave two brooms to me on my birthday!”

“Merlin have mercy on our souls,” James utters as he stares at Kurama with growing horror, evident on his face. “We are bloody screwed.”

(When Kurama joins the team, it’s after throwing several hard metal balls into everyone, catching a tiny golden ball after the twentieth time, and dodging the balls called bludgers. Everyone agrees Kurama should be the Seeker, regardless what he protests. At least it’s easy to find the damn tiny thing and chase after it because of the magic it releases.)

* * *

“Hey.”

“Hi.”

“... what do you want?” Kurama asks tiredly, looks up from his seals to see Regulus and Sirius standing together, the older Black looking a little nervous. The Hufflepuff nudges Sirius’ shoulder, gives Kurama a nod and proceeds to leave them alone. He shifts his eyes towards Sirius, narrows them. “Well?”

“Nothing,” the Black says flatly, moves to sit next to him, his chakra bubbling with nervously. He feels slightly guilty for the incident back then, telling Sirius he knows nothing about loss when they both lost everything. He isn’t used to talking about situations he shares with others, but he can offer a somewhat heartfelt apology.

“Sorry,” he gruffly says. Sirius’ head snaps up in shock, mouth opening in surprise as he stares at him. He looks away from the boy, feeling his cheeks grow hotter. Why does his body react this way every time he sees Sirius? “You heard me, I’m not fucking repeating myself again, got that?”

“Yeah, I heard that,” he hears Sirius say softly. They say no more after that, comfortably leaning against each other as he continues to create seals, Sirius quietly reading a book next to him. He likes this, not that he’ll ever admit it.

(He realizes after they go to dinner together and thinks, _ Fuck, this feeling is that fucking emotion Naruto always feels for nearly every damn human_.)

* * *

Peter seems more nervous than usual, and he can’t help but see how he interacts with Slytherin, flinching like he has something to hide. Kurama stares harder at him, before looking towards Regulus happily sketching next to him.

The Black looks up from his sketchbook, narrows his eyes towards Kurama, before he irritably snaps, “What?”

“I still fucking hate you,” he tells him instead of mentioning Peter’s questioning actions these days. That Gryffindor is getting suspicious with his movements, jerking at every shadow, and he can tell there’s something up with him.

“So? I don’t care,” Regulus retorts back, returning to his sketchbook and raises his quill like a brush, like a weapon. Makes him flinch away from the boy, and the Black looks up warily. “If you think I’m gonna control you with the Sharingan, think again,” he dryly tells Kurama. “I’m not.”

“I don’t know if you’re telling the truth, shithead,” he flatly says, and looks away, looks towards Peter and chakra is growing more frightful. Maybe he should keep an eye on that boy, he might do something stupid, and he doesn’t like it.

Coward.

* * *

Taking a step off of the train, he glances back for Sirius, uncertain if the boy realizes they part ways here. The Black gives him a warm smile, presses their shoulders together, and he slightly melts inside. He’s... attached to the Black, ever since he realized his own feelings.

He’s definitely not pining after him like what Naruto and his wife did to each other during a mission, before the mission, and after the mission. He’s just... attracted to the Black is all. It’s not like he notices the way Sirius shakes when he’s scared, the way his eyes crinkle when he smiles, and the way he’s fidgeting his leg when he’s nervous. Nope, not at all.

“Are you going to be okay?” he softly asks Kurama, and he shrugs. His parents are dead, gone, and Lily already offered him a place to stay. “I don’t want to leave you like this.”

“I’ll be fine, Lily offered,” Kurama says, nudging him towards Regulus as he tries to smile at him. “Again, I’ll be fine... Okami.”

Sirius’ face breaks out into a smile, and he grins at him, before he grabs his arm and drags him towards where Lily stands with her parents. “Regulus will wait for me,” he explains at his incredulous look at him. Kurama only shakes his head at him, before turning back to find his footing from Sirius’ want to be with him and-

Kurama freezes.

A tired woman stands a little away from him, talking with another woman, who he remembers as a Slytherin who graduated from Hogwarts two years ago. Though that isn’t the issue, it’s the fact that the tired woman looks familiar, and it makes him suck in a breath. It can’t be, she’s dead, dead and gone, but he can’t help but say-

“Mom?” he asks, the woman turning to meet him eye to eye, and it’s her, his mother, who’s not dead, very much alive and _ she’saliveshe’sstillheremymotherisalive_\- “Mom? Is... Is that you?”

“Remus? Kurama?” His mother’s face slightly brightens and she rushes forward to pull him into her arms, gives a tight hug as he feels his eyes blurring with tears. “Oh, sweetheart, I’m so sorry,” Hope sobs, buries her face into his hair. “I just wanted to protect you, and those monsters wouldn’t let me escape-”

He can barely hear his mother babble, Sirius and the mysterious woman, but he hugs his mother tightly with his hands shaking. “Mom,” he chokes out, feels her energy, her familiar energy, sing with happiness and he quietly smiles against her. “Mom,” he repeats.

Footsteps echo towards them, making him stiffen and turn his head to see the woman and Sirius come closer to them. Sirius’ white chakra flickers warily, while the woman’s purple magic flashes dangerously as she steps towards them. Hope turns towards the other two, and gives the woman an exhausted smile.

“She’s the one who saved me,” she explains to him.

The woman sniffed, looking slightly disgusted as she slightly turns her nose away from them, glancing towards Sirius. “My name is Narcissa Malfoy,” she says coolly as she inspects her nails. “And I was the one who rescued your mother. I have a favour to ask of you.”

Kurama can only stare back and pray that this woman wouldn’t bring hell down on his precious ones.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And this ends Kurama's fourth year at Hogwarts! Yes, Kurama's mother is STILL alive and you'll have to wait to find out in the next update what _really_ happened. Kurama is now falling in love with Sirius (my rarepair/crackship is Hatake Sakumo/Kurama), and we'll see what'll happen next!
> 
> Terms:  
_Sennin_ \- Sage.  
_Chidori_ \- Kakashi's infamous assassination jutsu. It is of _raiton_ (lightning nature), and is a ball of lightning that concentrates in your hand. Only those of the Sharingan can use this.  
_Jinchuuriki_ \- Human container. They are to house the _Bijuu_.
> 
> Enjoy!


	5. 1975-1976

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Near the end of summer of 1975 and fifth year of Hogwarts.

“I didn’t think you’d be here, too,” Kurama says with a snort as he accepts a cup of tea by one of those strange creatures called House Elves. Their magic feels completely different, more fluid like water and much more stable, unlike the way human magic feels. “Fucking bitch.”

“I feel so honoured that you still think that way,” Narcissa says dryly, shakes her head slightly, before nodding towards the House Elf. “Dobby, you may go. Do not reveal any of this to Lucius. I doubt he’d be pleased that I brought my cousin’s friend here.”

The House Elf nervously bows before snapping his fingers, vanishing from his sight. He turns to look towards the woman, rolling his eyes as he sips his tea. Stares in surprise at the tea before looking back at her. “What the fuck kind of tea is this, you fucking cat?”

“Some catnip mixed into it. It calms my nerves.”

“It makes you a fucking harpy is what it does to you.”

“I see what being reborn does to you,” she says flatly, sipping her tea again as she glances towards him with a raised eyebrow. He bares his teeth at her, before she laughs. “It seems it’s making you more tempered than how you usually act.”

“Shut up,” he mutters, glares at her from behind the teacup as he takes another sip of tea and makes a face at the taste again. It reminds him of how high he must have been during the Fourth Shinobi War. He doesn’t want to remember Madara, his Sharingan, and how Obito capture his other half and used the _ Bijuu _ to activate the _ Juubi_-

No, he can’t think about that. He needs to start thinking about how he’s going to finish his last three Hogwarts years and figure out a way to help his human companions about their little nonsense war. Kurama isn’t one to feel like he needs to help with the humans’ war, but for now, this will do.

This feeling, anyways.

“We have much to discuss, Kurama,” Narcissa interrupts his thoughts before he glares at her and nods slowly.

“We do... Matatabi.”

* * *

“I may be in trouble,” Severus admits when they reach the train, Kurama hugging his mother tightly before reaching his... human friends. He’s slowly getting used to them, as much as he hates to admit it, though he continues to listen to the boy. “I’ve been making Dark spells-“

“You’ve been _ what_?” James shrieks, makes them all wince at the volume of his scream. Kurama can’t help but lean against Sirius for comfort, the Black offering it to him. _ Glasses boy needs to stop fucking screaming_, he thinks to himself. “Severus, how could you? We trusted you, you bloody bastard-“

“Let him finish!” Lily snaps at James, before she looks over to Severus with a guarded look. “Sev, why were you making Dark spells?”

“I was studying them so I could make a countercurse,” the Slytherin answers, narrowing his eyes as he stands his ground against the girl. “If I can understand them, then we can save lives!”

Kurama takes a seat next to the window, Sirius staring at Severus with an approving nod. He didn’t know much about Dark spells, only that they were forbidden and so easy to cast, as Narcissa explained to him earlier this summer.

“That’s a good idea,” Sirius comments lightly, glances towards Regulus as he clears his throat. He turns to see Severus giving a small nod to him. “Creating countercurses are the best way to defend yourself against Dark spells, which is good that you’re trying to understand the nature of Dark spells themselves.”

“It’s better than back there,” Regulus murmurs, looking out the window.

Kurama doesn’t want to know what Regulus means.

(He learns it, anyways, when Sirius accidentally mentions they’ve been attacked a few times in their own home by their cousin, Bellatrix.

She’s someone he wants to kill, for hurting Sirius.)

* * *

He receives his first letter from Narcissa, when he’s eating breakfast with the others and a light brown owl drops the letter next to him. It cocks its head at him, before stealing the bacon from his plate, eating it eagerly. Kurama scowls at it.

“Stupid bird,” he spits out, grabbing the letter as the owl sneers at him, wings flaring out as if to hit him. Feathers flutter around, lightly landing on his cookies and he sees red. “Look, you asshat, you don’t go putting fucking feathers around my cookies, you got it? I don’t care if you want my bacon, but it’s either your fucking life or my cookies!”

The owl hoots at him, narrowing sharp black eyes as it stomps its feet next to the letter. “What the hell do you want? To make me write back to someone?” he asks irritably, taking it and ripping the envelope open before taking the letter out, narrows his eyes at the letter.

“That’s the Malfoy family crest,” Sirius murmurs in his ear, making him nearly flinch from how close the Black is to him. He swallows, before neutralizing his expression and turns towards him. “What are they trying to send you?”

“A letter, genius,” he snarks as he pushes Sirius away from him, opening the letter up to see cursive writing. Kurama groans, stands up and turns to leave the Great Hall. “I’ll be back, idiots. James, don’t you fucking dare play your stupid pranks, got it? I don’t care if it’s a Slytherin or Ravenclaw, or even a harmless prank on Severus. I _ will _ hang you by your trousers here.”

James gapes at him. “But-”

“Do I make myself clear?”

“... yes.”

“Good.” Kurama beckons the owl to follow him, baring his teeth at the bird who dared to ruin his damn cookies. “You, stupid bird, come with me.”

The owl only screeches at him.

(It follows, anyways.)

* * *

_ Kurama, _

_ As you can see, my dear owl has been sent to give this letter to you, and hopefully you will reply back soon as fast as you can. His name is Strix and will be our messenger between us both. My husband doesn’t know about this, so do be discreet when sending letters to me. _

_ I will have to warn you about the Death Eaters’ leader, Voldemort. I have tried to use every connection I had to find out about him, but nothing is coming up so far. All I know is that he graduated from Hogwarts and aims to take over the Wizarding World, to kill all the Muggleborns. _

_ The Death Eaters’ goals is to keep the blood ‘pure’ and accuse Muggleborns of stealing magic. I have no idea what will happen to the Halfbloods, but I suggest you try to pretend that you’re a pureblood if their plan succeeds. _

_ I hope to Merlin and our father, not. _

_ As you know from the Daily Prophet, Voldemort is known as a madman and many have tried to stop him. I want you to know that he specializes in Dark magic and Legilimency, and by all means, prepare yourself for his invasion of your mind. _

_ However, I figured out a way to block his Legilimency; by using our chakra. _ Bijuu _ chakra can stop him, since it will burn his mind as he’s trying to force his way into it. He has tried it on me, and I watched him scream on my husband’s floor after I used my chakra on him. _

_ This is all I have so far, Kurama. As far as you know these seem to be random and not connected, but I assure you on our father’s grave that it is not. I will send another letter when I find my information and hopefully, you will be better prepared by then. _

_ Good luck, Kurama. _

_ Matatabi _

* * *

“Uchiha.”

“Kyuubi.”

“What kind of knowledge do you have about Dark magic?” Kurama asks bluntly as he sits across from the Hufflepuff, wrinkling his nose at the amount of dust in the corner. “Geez, I didn’t realize you like fucking dusty corners like how you were fucked up by Madara in that stupid cave-”

“Shut up!” Regulus yells, stands, slams his hand down on the table, eyes spinning into red and black pinwheels. Kurama’s breath hitches before he looks away, struggling to keep calm from seeing those eyes again. Not again, not _ again, notagainhecan’tlosecontrolagain- _ “You don’t know anything!”   
  
“I don’t know anything?” he snarls quietly, rising up to meet the Uchiha who has ruined everything he’s had. “You took control of me, Uchiha, and then you captured my siblings to use our fucking chakra to bring back my asshat of a grandmother and _ she nearly took everything away from us_. You destroyed our home. So tell me, how is it that I fucking don’t know anything?”

“I got controlled after he took me in,” Regulus snaps in a low voice, voice harsh as his hands curl into fists. “He made me into his pawn and I destroyed everything I had just because I saw my best friend die in front of me. I lost myself when we started that war and I was not myself when I did every single one of those actions ever since my supposed death.”

“And that makes everything better? That you’re-”

“Stay quiet or you’re out of the library!” Madam Pince screeches as she turns around the corner, making them both turn around and glare at her. “Do you understand me, boys? It’s either you stay quiet or you’re out of here!”

“Yes, Madam,” they respond simultaneously. Madam Pince only huffs in annoyance before walking away, as Kurama glances at Regulus with a growl under his breath. How the Uchiha manages to get under his skin so easily reminds him of how Naruto reacts the same way to him.

Regulus hisses, looks away as he takes a seat again. “Don’t,” he warns. “Stop mentioning it. It’s over. We’re not doing this again.”

“You try, and I swear that I’ll fucking kill you,” Kurama promises. “Now help me with the Dark magic stuff. I need it.”

* * *

“It’s Valentine’s Day,” Lily sings as she sits down next to him, gives him a sly look as she opens up the Potions textbook. “What are you going to do?”

“Same thing I do every year,” Kurama grumbles as he glares at the essay planning in front of him that he has to do. Why do humans even need homework when all they needed was the experience? It didn’t make sense! But then again, he used to be in a shinobi village and all they needed to practice was weapons and assassination. “Go fucking hide.”

Lily only hums, waving at Severus and James, and Kurama sees the dark look passing between them. It reminds him of Team Seven, with the love triangle they had when they were young. He shakes his head of the thought, slightly suspicious where Peter went but he shrugs that off, too.

He hasn’t seen Sirius all day, either (not that he will admit he hopes Sirius will ask him on this day. Nope).

“I need help,” James says, shooting Severus a look as he hands Lily a sheet of paper. “I was planning to do something for _ someone’s _ birthday, and I’m kinda stuck. Help me, please, because I’ve only figured this out today. Sev didn’t help at all.”

“Shut up, Potter, I didn’t think you’d want to celebrate anyone’s birthdays!” Severus snaps, crosses his arms as he glares.

“Both of you, shut up!” Lily yells, and Kurama tones them out, quickly writing down what he plans to write about for the Charms essay, since Professor Flitwick tends to be rather need with homework being on time. Then he translates the runes his professor needs his class to do (it reminds him of sealing), and continues on.

He feels magic all around him, weaving around the library, the entire castle, and black sparks next to his vision. Trembling magic shudders all around him, down in the dungeons and he can’t help but frown, because the blackness and the magic seem to be intertwining, and-

His shoulder gets tapped and Kurama moves before spinning around, punches Sirius in the face and watches him go down. The other gape at him while Sirius stares at him with amusement and surprise flickering in his eyes and chakra.

Fuck.

(“You broke my nose,” Sirius says amusedly as he sits next to him on his bed, leaning against him. “I didn’t think you’d do that to me.”

“I don’t care, I’m not apologizing,” Kurama says stubbornly, leans back against him too, keeping his eyes on his homework and papers he plans to do. Sirius chuckles next to him, making him swallow and avoids meeting the Black’s gaze. “I’m not.”

“I know. That’s who you are.” He feels his breath catch, finally turning to meet Sirius’ warm gaze on him. “That’s... who I love.”

_ Oh. _

“... yeah. Me, too.”)

* * *

“Mister... Uzumaki,” Professor McGonagall says behind him, saying the name that belonged to Naruto, and the last memoir he can hold for his oldest friend. “Please, may you come with me? I have a few things to discuss with you, and that includes your homework.”

“Sure,” Kurama says, shifting his books as he looks over to Sirius, who takes his books away. The boy motions him to follow the Professor, giving him a smile. “You’ll be okay, right? Don’t wanna leave too long for you to get ideas.”

“Never thought you’d be that possessive of me, Kurama,” Sirius says amusedly as he nudges him. 

“Please, you’re more possessive,” he snorts and turns back to the Professor to follow her. She only looks at both of them with a soft look, motioning him to follow her as he nods towards Sirius and walks. He doesn’t know what Professor McGonagall wants with him, but he’s curious to see what she’s talking about.

She glances at him. “Mister Uzumaki, your marks are improving, despite the claimed condition Professor Dumbledore keeps telling the staff about. However, I would like to discuss the O.W.Ls that you will have to complete. Your transfiguration O.W.L exam is on a full moon night, and I want to ask you what alternate day you can change it to.”

“Oh,” Kurama says, licking dry lips as he thinks about it. Since the old coot still thinks he’s a werewolf, he has to pretend to go along with it, as much as he didn’t think he should. “I guess you can schedule it on Saturday of the first exam week, I got nothing to do.”

“Very well, Mister Uzumaki,” she says, nods towards him as they stop by her office. “I will see you tomorrow in class, then.”

“Yes, Professor.”

He’s screwed.

* * *

“That took forever!” James groans, flopping down on the grass, stretching his arms into the air as he looks over at them. Peter whines as he also flops down, while Regulus and Severus quietly exchange pleasantries. “Sirius, why didn’t you tell us that it was hard?”  
  
“Because I didn’t know it would take you that long?” Sirius asks in an uncertain tone as Kurama leans his head on the Black’s shoulder, their fingers laced together. “I mean, Peter was shorter because he became a rat. But your animagus form was a stag, James. That might be the reason why it took longer.”

“Maybe,” James grouses, taking a look at them before he points to their hands and shrieks with glee. “HA! Sev! You owe me a sickle!”

“I wasn’t the one who made a bet with you, Potter,” Severus drawls as he points to Peter, gives a tiny smirk. Kurama glances towards Sirius, slightly moving closer to him. “Though, I’m glad that you two finally gotten together. Maybe Lily can call off her bet with Regulus now.”

“Hey! I didn’t make a bet with her!” the younger Black objects before James twists into a stag and nudges Regulus roughly. “Ow! Potter, what was that for?”

“Well,” Sirius murmurs quietly as Kurama tones the boys out and looks towards him. His chest tightens when the Black leans in towards him. “That wasn’t a disaster, but I want you to know that I love you.”

“... I love you, too, idiot.”

(Lily screams with joy when she hears the news and hugs them both tightly.

He doesn’t mind it as much anymore.)

* * *

“So, you’re Uchiha Obito,” Narcissa says as she looks at Regulus, clicking her tongue before she glances at Kurama. “I can work with that. I just didn’t think you would be my little cousin who loved cuddling up next to me and asking me for bedtime stories.”

Regulus looks slightly horrified at the information reveal, ducks his head. “Narcissa!” he protests as he fidgets under her gaze. He can’t help but laugh at the boy’s reaction to Narcissa’s reveal as the _ Nibi no Bijuu_.

“You were very adorable back then,” the woman says amusedly, places her hand on the seal in front of them. He can see different components of storage and inter-dimension, swallowing as he looks towards her. “Now, this is a seal to store some of our chakra in it, to save our energy. We can’t have too much placed in here.”

“Then why’s the Uchiha here?” Kurama growls as he crosses his arms.

“Because he’s the only one who Voldemort believes is a spy,” she responds coolly as she nods towards the younger Black, clicks her tongue again. “We can use that to our own advantage to take this madman down once and for all. But... it’ll take years.”

“How long do we have?”

“I estimate around ten years to take him down, otherwise we’ll be ready to leave. Voldemort doesn’t know about chakra, and he won’t expect any of our jutsu.”

“... you’re taking me back home after this.”

“Of course.”

(Kurama can tell, that even if they succeed in banishing Voldemort away, they won’t have long before he comes back.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soon, it will be the next chapter of Kurama's adventure in Hogwarts and closer to the end! I would like to say that yes, if you didn't realize, Kurama and Sirius finally gotten together. And yes, Matatabi is here, too, as Narcissa, and hopefully she will appear more!
> 
> Terms:  
_ Bijuu_ \- Tailed Beasts.  
_Juubi_ \- Ten-Tailed Beast.  
_Nibi no Bijuu_ \- Two-Tailed Beast.
> 
> Enjoy!


	6. 1976-1977

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Near the end of summer of 1976 and sixth year of Hogwarts.

When Kurama hears a knock on the door, he didn’t expect to find Sirius staring at him with a look of despair and panic. He widens the door, allowing the Black to come in before closing the door and turning around. He doesn’t know what made Sirius look so... so afraid, not ever since he first met him.

“What happened?” he gruffly asks, taking Sirius by the hand and leads him towards the new couch his mom purchased a week earlier. Everything in this house is new, since their old house was destroyed by Death Eaters, a Ministry worker tells them with a sweet and sickening attitude.

He never wanted to tear someone apart like that in her life.

But he can’t worry about that right now, he has Sirius to look after now. “I gave up my position as heir to the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black,” Sirius breathes, reaches up to pull him close and hugs him tightly.

He can feel the Black’s body shaking, and it slightly worries him. Sirius never had allowed himself to be so... so _ vulnerable _ like this, and he hates how he’s so helpless with every single human’s emotions. “Oh _ Sennin_, I left Regulus back there, all alone, Kurama-”

“Oi, slow down,” Kurama interrupts, looking straight at him, curls his hands around his forearms tightly. “What are you talking about, leaving the Uchiha alone and leaving your fucking family of insane people?”

Sirius only lets his head fall down and takes a trembling breath in front of him. “I left my family again... I’m such a coward,” he sobs, and Kurama can feel tears soak through his shirt as he holds him. “How could I just-”

He doesn’t know what to tell the Black, when he never left Naruto, when he was forced to leave his _ jinchuuriki _ because of the _ Juubi_. He doesn’t know how to tell him it’s gonna be alright, that he would see the Uchiha when they get back to Hogwarts. He doesn’t know any of the damn shitty things humans do to make each other feel better.

So he only continues to hold Sirius in his arms, and vows to himself, _ They will pay_.

(Kurama finds Sirius sleeping after the few minutes. He can only smile in relief.)

* * *

“Rama!” Lily calls cheerfully, sharply as she waves Kurama and Sirius over to where she’s sitting. Severus sits beside her, looking dejected as he stares at... whatever he’s staring at. Kurama hopes it’s not a cockroach because those things are disgusting as fuck. “Sirius!”

“Hello, Lily,” Sirius murmurs as he takes a seat beside the window. He groans as he sits next to him, brushing his hand alongside Sirius’. The Black leans against him, before he turns to Lily again with a questioning and worried look. “Have... have you seen Regulus?”

The red-haired girl pauses at that, tilts her head to the side. “No, not yet,” she finally answers, and he can feel Sirius’ chakra spiking up in a panic. Groans in exasperation as Lily stares at Kurama and Sirius. “Why? Did something happen? You usually come in with Regulus and I thought-”

“Sirius, you bloody blighter!” James yells, slams open the door to their compartment and makes them jump. “How dare you run out without taking Regulus with you, for Merlin’s sake! You could have grabbed him right there and taken him out with you-”

“Will you shut the fuck up, James!” Kurama roars, holding the Black tight to him. “I don’t need to hear you screaming!”

“Excuse me, but Sirius bloody Black is responsible for this entire mess right now,” James snaps back, crossing his arms in anger. Magic crackles through the boy’s body in anger, and he can see how it’s rising around James, moving fluidly around him. He can tell that it’s dangerous.

(But Kurama doesn’t know that one day, the magic around James will be one of the many magics that will save the family he chooses and his son.)

“You dragged us all into chaos!”

“I know,” Sirius says softly. “It’s my fault.”

(It isn’t.)

* * *

It’s only been a few days and they haven’t seen Regulus.

Sirius slowly closes into himself, only speaking when spoken to, and not even Kurama can bring him out of his shell. He starts doing poorly in his classes, refuses to eat, no matter how much everyone begs him to.

Except James.

James glares at the Black, refusing to interact with him, refuses to even work with him at times during classes. He’s the first to leave when he sees Sirius, and he’s the last to be seen without Sirius. It slowly breaks the Black and Kurama can tell he’s struggling between trying to reach out to James or leaving him alone.

Kurama hates it.

Hates how Sirius is not even contributing to their conversations, not even praising the others for their improving marks. Hates how Sirius’ eyes, once full of life, is now dull and grey. Hates how James doesn’t realize that what he’s doing is affecting _ Sirius_, and he isn’t standing for that.

“Talk to him,” he snaps quietly at James when they eat at the Great Hall.

James looks at him with narrowed eyes. “No,” he says simply, turns back to his meal like there was nothing wrong. 

“Talk to him,” Kurama repeats forcibly, a little louder and he sees that he caught the attention of the other students. “He’s hurting because of you.”

“I said no,” James growls as he turns to glare at him, fork stabbing into a sausage in front of him. His grip tightens on the knife in his hand, about to wield it as a kunai. “Merlin’s bollocks, Kurama, I don’t want to talk to the bastard. Why do you even want me to talk to him? It’s his fault that this is going out of-”

He loses it. “You fucking jackass!” he screams, pushing himself up. Manages to gain the attention of nearly everyone in the Great Hall, can feel their gazes on him as he glares down at James. “Stop fucking thinking about what happened before! Look at him! He’s going to fucking try and kill himself again because of your fucking attitude to him!”

“You’re the bloody blighter’s boyfriend,” the Potter hisses. Kurama feels the knife bending in half from the grip, barely hearing Peter squeak out in terror or Sirius’ hand on his own. He sees red. “Of course you’re going to support him-”

“This isn’t about me supporting him!” Kurama stabs the knife into the table, anger washing over him like a storm, crashing down on him all at once. “It’s about you fucking ignoring him and making him feel like he’s not allowed to do anything!”

“He ran without taking Regulus with him,” James hisses quietly, and he stiffens, feels Sirius’ chakra freeze with him before guilt overwhelms him. “Why do you think I’m angry? He abandoned his own brother to those bloody Blacks and he’s not even feeling guilty for it...” 

Kurama tunes him out, struggling to calm himself down. He has vast control of his _ sakki_, and he can’t unleash it on another human when they’ve never encountered it before. He has no understanding of humans when others are concerned because he used to be a _Bijuu_, with only freedom and emotions as his only possessions. He doesn’t understand any of it.

But James cares about Regulus and it makes him wonder how he even didn’t even notice how the Potter and the Uchiha become closer.

“And he nearly got Regulus killed!”

That snaps him back to attention.

And makes him lose control of his _ sakki_.

(Kurama lays awake hours later in his bed, struggling to breathe and holding the guilt that he’s sent so many humans to the infirmary (others look at him in fear) while Sirius holds him tightly.

It nearly works to make him forget, that James cares more about Regulus than anything else.

It reminds him of himself and Sirius, about Naruto and the Uchiha brat-

Well. It’s none of his business anyways.)

* * *

_ Matatabi, _

_ I would like to know what exactly happened to the Most Noble and Ancient House of Black this past summer. This infuriating human keeps mentioning the Uchiha nearly being killed, though I doubt that he could be killed easily due to his Sharingan. _

_ Moving on, there is this friend of James Potter who keep disappearing into thin air most of the time. His name is Peter Pettigrew, and I want you to try and keep tabs on him for me. His chakra is fucking too jumpy and full of fear. I have this suspicion he’s up to no good, but the others trust him. _

_ Hogwarts is filling up with Dark Magic as we speak, and I have no idea whether it’s due to Voldemort’s interference or something else. _

_ Pass me a charmed book about Dark Magic as well if you can. I need to study more about it. _

_ Have fun, old hag. _

_ Kurama _

* * *

He watches Severus and James play a game of Wizard’s Chess (Peter watches them play too and cheers them on), curling up next to Lily and Sirius as they read quietly. Kurama sighs softly, leans into Sirius’ embrace before the Black looks over to him with a raised eyebrow.

“Tired?” he asks sympathetically.

“Too tired to deal with this shit, that’s what,” Kurama grumbles, glances at the fireplace they conjured up in the room when they first came in.

James doesn’t outright ignore Sirius not, but he doesn’t acknowledge him, either. It does relieve Kurama when Sirius’ guilt slowly erodes away, leaving a small contentment inside the Black. It doesn’t make him too happy, but he can deal with a slightly happier Sirius than one full of guilt.

“It can’t be that tiring,” Lily says as she looks at them with a small smile. He can feel her magic flowing with ease, though it’s slightly sparked in guilt when she watches James. “You’re only sitting there next to Sirius.”

“Shut up,” he growls, turns to throw a nearby pillow at her and-

Sirius’ chakra freezes as the Black trembles beside him. Then he feels it. Kurama feels familiar chakra waves, one that reminds him of fire and war and all the fucking guilt inside and- he turns to see Regulus leaning against the doorway with a shaky smile on that damn face. The younger Black raises a hand.

“Sorry I’m late. I got lost on the road of life.”

James and Sirius only stand up, rushes towards Regulus before they both hug him tightly, one crying loudly and the other sobbing into Regulus’ shoulder. Lily glances at him, before she hugs Kurama tightly.

(“You bloody idiot,” Kurama hears James murmur. “Why would you send me that letter-”

“I just wanted to let you know,” Uchiha Obito’s voice says lightly, dangerously. “That I’m glad and not fucking happy that you made a dramatic scene about my supposed abuse and near death and placed it all on my brother.”

James splutters.

He pretends not to notice Peter trying to sneak out of the room.)

* * *

(“I’m sorry,” he hears Regulus murmur to Sirius as they finish up the last bits of homework they have left. He turns his head to eye the brothers sitting side by side as they quickly write down their paragraphs. “For making you go through all of that.”

“No, I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be.”

“I should be-”

“It was my decision,” Regulus’ quiet tone convenes as much to him. He doesn’t know Regulus is about to get himself into, but he can’t make Sirius go through that again. “I can’t lose anyone again. Not after Madara. Not after everything I’ve been through.”

“You’re still going back, though.”

“Have to. It’s probably your only chance to beat the Dark Lord, especially with one so close to him and to get all the information you need to defeat him.”

Kurama chooses to not listen anymore, turning back to his papers.)

* * *

“You are a bloody bastard, Snape.”

“Merlin’s bollocks, just shut up, Potter.”

Sirius only downs his butterbeer, raising his eyebrows at the two who are glaring at each other. Kurama leans against the Black with a roll of his eyes, exasperated with them. At least Sirius and James are slowly getting along with each other again, and he can rest easy.

He doesn’t know whether or not to knock the two idiots’ heads, but he can only watch as they continue to their glaring contest. It reminds him of Naruto and Sasuke when they are young and he was still stuck inside his _ jinchuuriki_. It makes his heart ache at the familiarity of it, makes him cast his eyes down for a moment before looking back up.

Kurama can’t dwell on the past.

“Why did we go with these two idiots?” Kurama asks dryly as he stares up at him.

“Because we need to supervise them and prevent each other from attacking each other,” Sirius answers, raises his hand to call for another pint of butterbeer. He wishes there’s some kind of alcohol he can drink right now, especially when dealing with Severus and James’ slight arguing.

He stares at him, because he is _ unbelievable _ when it comes to this. “Just because James wants to date Lily and Severus looks like he wants to throttle him?”

“... you sound like you dislike the idea.”

“When we could just ditch them and actually go and explore the place?” Kurama steals the Black’s butterbeer from him, slowly drinks it in front of him as he smirks against the glass. He licks his lips from the sweet taste of the drink as he watches Sirius’ eyes go dark. “Well?”

“Maybe,” Sirius says steadily like he isn’t affected by his show, before he takes Kurama’s hand and he feels his own cheeks heat up. “If you can stop seducing me.”

He pauses, allowing the words to sink in his mind and feels himself twitch. He can feel his cheeks heating up more as he bares his teeth at the other. “I am _ not _ seducing you!” Kurama says snappishly, refusing to look away from Sirius’ eyes. “You fucking asshole, how fucking dare you-”

“Stop flirting with him, Ookami!” James whines behind them, and maybe it’s good that James is calling Sirius by the nicknames they’ve decided as little children. Except, he’s pissed that they’ve gotten interrupted. “Like, I get you two are together, but no need to express it right now!”

The Black growls under his breath, pulls Kurama close to his body and Kurama can hear his heartbeat pounding loudly in his chest. He swallows and looks up to Sirius, and takes his hand and smiles sharply at him. “Hey,” he says.

“... hey.”

“Don’t go sappy on me, Hatake.”

“For you? Always.”

(They sneak out of their dorms later that day, at night, and they sit on top of the castle. They talk about their lives, about their past lives, about everything that’s happening so far.

Kurama doesn’t say it. He knows Sirius already knows.

_ I love you_.)

* * *

“Kyuubi.” He glances up towards Regulus, before focusing back on his papers because Professor Slughorn will give him lower marks than what he needs to go into N.E.W.T classes. He doesn’t understand the needs of potions, but it could be handy when Voldemort rises again, especially in the arts of poison.

Like how all shinobi is skilled in it.

“Uchiha,” he replies, not bothering to look up again as he writes down what he wants inside the papers. Kurama doesn’t know what the younger Black wants from him, but he supposed that it didn’t matter now, since he was here. “What the hell do you want?”

“I’m not going to use my Sharingan on you, if that’s what you think I was planning to do,” Regulus replies flatly as he goes to sit across from him. He marks another note before observing the way the younger Black is nervously sitting, the way he’s stiffening at every sound there is. “No, I need your help.”

“What the fuck do you even need my help with?” Kurama snaps, sets his quill down beside him and reaches for one of the cookies beside him. “You _ clearly _ don’t need my _ help_, Uchiha, especially with your brilliant plans.”

“That’s not what I mean,” he says curtly before he lifts up his left sleeve and- oh. A visible black mark is on Regulus’ inner forearm, a snake slithering and winding away from a skull’s mouth. He slightly shivers from the reminder of Orochimaru, carefully lifts a finger to poke it. 

“The hell is that?”

“The Dark Mark of Voldemort,” Regulus answers, his hand curling into a fist as if in pain. “I need you to find a way to get rid of this after I’m done spying on him.”

Fascinating. He didn’t realize that marks look exactly like runes and seals, and that’s exactly what Kurama specializes in. He hasn’t been stuck in three _ jinchuuriki_’s bodies to not learn anything, especially when two were fuinjutsu masters. He places his paper beside his quill and turns towards the boy.

“The Dark Mark, huh?” Kurama smiles shrewdly as he picks up a brush and a piece of paper and motions Regulus over.. “It looks like it can be removed like a seal, so I’m going to copy the design and see if I can work from there.”

He’s only beginning to trace the shape when the younger Black speaks again. “... truce?”

“As long as you don’t use that fucking Sharingan on me, we’re even.”

(_Perhaps_, Kurama reflects as he stares at the copied Dark Mark, _ we can be friends_.)

* * *

(Narcissa stares at the sleeping face of her supposed ‘husband,’ and she can’t help but wonder what really is Lucius’ purpose for her as she slips out of the bed. She dresses herself neatly as she could without limping, slips one of her kunai into her sleeves, and heads out of the bedroom door.

Her only responsibility required of her is to bear a child for Lucius, for his sick monster of a master, a greedy man for power that uncomfortably reminds her of Madara. He’s going to use _ her _ child as a tool to take control of the Wizarding World, and it still reminds her of the Fourth Shinobi War.

She quietly heads where her beloved owl is, wincing as pain shoots up her body and relaxes when it seemingly vanishes. Is this what every human feels, when they’re in a bed with a partner and they like talking in this rather strange tone? She really doesn’t want to experience that mess again, except she needs to put on a convincing act that she’s submissive.

Which she never is.

Tying her letter to Strix’s leg, Narcissa lets out a sigh of relief, watches her owl fly into the night before she heads to the kitchen. Perhaps she can convince Dobby to give her another cup of tea with those catnip. To relax her so she doesn’t have to seem so suspicious to the madman.

Narcissa lets her chakra flow, and it roars. Smiles when it rises and spreads around her, heals her to let her walk faster.

She is Matatabi, the _ Nibi Bijuu_, and she will not let a couple of humans wear her down.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're nearing the end of this fanfic, folks, so hold onto your hats and hopefully I can finish the next chapter while suffering underneath so many fanfic plot bunnies!
> 
> James and Regulus are actually really close in this fic, though I might expand on it if I can do a quick one-shot that shows the dynamics of their relationship together. Severus here, views Lily more as a sister now than a love interest, so he's probably going to try and hex James while he has a chance.
> 
> Kurama and Sirius are growing close, and no, they did not kiss yet! Not all romances need to have kisses, but they will have at least pecks on cheeks and cuddling!
> 
> I also have plans for Narcissa, so go and watch out for that!
> 
> Terms:  
_Sennin_ \- Sage.  
_Jinchuuriki_ \- Human container.  
_Juubi_ \- Ten-tailed _Bijuu_.  
_Bijuu_ \- Tailed Beasts.  
_Sakki_ \- Killing intent.  
_Nibi Bijuu_ \- Two-Tailed Beast.
> 
> Enjoy!


	7. 1977-1978

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Near the end of summer of 1977 and final year of Hogwarts.

The dark magic inside him is getting harder to contain.

Kurama curls into himself, pulls the bed covers over him as he burrows himself deeper. He doesn’t bother to turn around when he hears the door to his room creak open. The dark magic swarms some parts of the sewers in his mind, as he keeps his eyes open and trained in front of him.

Feels the bed dip down and a hand on his shoulder, gently shaking him. Grudgingly opening his eyes, he glares at the offending hand before looking up at the dark figure of Sirius. The Black doesn’t say anything, pulling the covers over himself, too, and curls around him.

Silence occurs between them, and he feels Sirius breathing down on the back of his neck, makes his head spin and wonder if this is part of the human experience. He’s never experienced much of human growing up before, since he used to be stuck inside three _ jinchuuriki _ and his current experience of doing it.

He doesn’t feel too different and he doesn’t look too different either, other than him outgrowing his hair past shoulder length and his face sharpening into familiar looks of his mother. Sirius’ hands tighten on him, makes him look behind him to meet dark grey eyes.

“The hell you doing?” Kurama grumbles as he twists himself around, fitting himself in his arms. Sirius doesn’t answer him, the other boy (_ man _, his mind whispers, and he can’t help but jolt at that, how fast he’s growing-) closing his eyes. “Sirius?”

“...” Sirius reopens his eyes, carefully untangling himself from Kurama and leans over him, leisurely cups his cheek. A hitch of breath. He’s suddenly very, _ very _ aware of how close Sirius is to him, the tender way he’s holding up himself, and the flush in Sirius’ cheeks. Heat rises to his own cheeks and he can’t help but continue to stare.

He can hear his voice crack. Damn this human body and how it seems so affected by Sirius’ own. “S-Sirius...?”

The _ man _ pauses, before his lips curl into a soft and hesitant smile. “Kurama,” he whispers, and he feels a shiver of warmth slither down his back at the sound of his name. “Can... can I kiss you?”

That catches him off guard, staring at the Black in slight shock as he feels his mouth part open and he can’t help but feel a little pissed. The dark magic fades a little at his own fury, Kurama grabbing Sirius’ shirt and pulling him close to hiss at him.

“Is that all you’ve wanted?” Kurama demands, watches the shock in Sirius’ eyes and watches them widen. Satisfaction curls in his chest at that. “A kiss? Could you not ask like a fucking normal person? Instead of crawling into my bed in the middle of the night? Are you fucking serious?”

The flabbergasted look on the man’s face is entertaining. “I... I’m sorry?”

“That’s right, you better fucking be,” he scoffs, glaring up at the Black. Then a laugh startles itself out his throat when he realizes what he’s just done. He just stopped a good opportunity to touch and kiss and do whatever humans did to their life partners. “Fuck, I just ruined the moment, didn’t I?”

A breathless laugh leaves Sirius, too, before he leans down closer and presses his forehead against him. “You’re beautiful,” he says, and Kurama’s breath hitches. Watches Sirius as he feels his thumb gently stroking his cheek. “You are the most amazing person I’ve ever met. You’re so, so smart and I...”

He falters, before he continues. “I love you.”

Kurama doesn’t know what else to say to him, the words etching themselves into his mind. No one else has ever said to him those words, save Naruto and his own father. He feels a little giddy, slightly breathless, before he reaches up to tangle his hands in the man’s hair.

“I... I love you, too,” Kurama mumbles.

The hopeless smile on Sirius’ face makes it all worth it.

(They stay like that for a while, the dark magic withering away with screams in his mind before Sirius flops down beside him and curls around him.

He doesn’t mind it this time.)

* * *

“Final year in Hogwarts!” Lily cheers as she bounces into the compartment, with Severus dutifully following her in. Kurama rolls his eyes as he slowly draws out the seal he plans to use during some of his spars with Sirius..

“Final year to deal with the likes of all of you,” Severus mutters, takes a seat next to Sirius and shoves his trunk underneath his seat. He can’t help but snort, because Severus chose to _ stay _with them, instead of the other people like those fucking Slytherins who cannot even take a hint.

“You’re kind of stuck with us, Severus,” Sirius gently reminds the other boy, man, Kurama doesn’t know what to call them anymore. “You chose to be here.”

“I was sarcastic,” comes the flat reply. Severus takes out a book from his pocket and hands it to Sirius with a sigh of exhaustion. “But do look over this. I was researching Dark spells and curses, and I tried to come up with ideas to counter them.”

The Black turns it open, flipping through the pages before he lets out a low whistle. “You did your research,” he says in surprise, making Kurama crane his neck to see notes and diagrams all over the paper. “Knockturn Alley?”

“Only place where all the forbidden books are right now,” Severus answers dryly. “Now for this curse and countercurse I made...”

Kurama tunes out their conversation, turning back to Lily, who’s smiling at him with _ that _ look on her face. He blaunches, backs away from her as she takes a seat in front of him. Sometimes, he wonders if Lily has a sense of knowing what’s wrong with him when he’s doing something.

“Well, how was your summer with Sirius?” she sings softly, a knowing look in her eyes as she places her elbows on the table. He feels her magic twist with excitement, and all he can remember is how Sirius smiles at him and curls around him in his bed with warm arms hugging him-

“For _ Sennin_’s sake, Lily,” he swears.

* * *

Sometimes, Kurama wonders how he’s been friends with _ idiots _.

“What the fuck.”

“Kurama-“

“What the absolute _ fuck_.”

“I can explain-“

He points towards the packages of cookies he just received from Petunia and is about to consider screaming. He never asked her to send her cookies, but apparently she wanted to. “Why the fuck would she send me so many fucking _ cookies_?”

“I... don’t know?” Lily says helplessly in a questioning tone. She flails her arms around, one nearly hitting Peter and the other hitting James. Peter flinches away and falls over the bench, landing on the ground. He absolutely did not laugh at that. The _ woman _ looks over apologetically at Peter before continuing. “Just accept the cookies?”

“This can last me until October,” Kurama hisses to her, before grabbing the letter on top of the packages. There’s so many questions swarming inside his mind, and he can’t help but internally scream. “Who the hell decided to tell her that I fucking like cookies?”

“I didn’t tell her,” Lily automatically says.

“We never bloody met her,” James points out flatly, gesturing to Peter and himself.

“S-Severus wouldn’t even talk to her,” Peter says in a petrified tone, cowering behind James, his magic flickering in panic.

Wimp.

Kurama knows Regulus wouldn’t even know Petunia, since they have never met face to face. He doesn’t know who else would contact Lily’s sister to bake _ him _ cookies, other than his mother (who is _ very _ well smitten with Petunia and has claimed her as an adoptive daughter). 

Feels himself twitch and a hum of magic that feels satisfied and opens the letter that came with the cookies. Then his jaw drops and he twitches again, because what the fuck is this?

_ To Kurama, _

_ As you can see, there are several packages of cookies that I am quite sure you don’t know who it came from, other than me. Congratulations. Your boyfriend had enough money to pay me to bake these cookies for you. _

_ Thank him and tell him to never ask me to make this many bloody cookies again. _

_ Petunia _

Of course it’s Sirius.

He’s about to scream bloody murder.

* * *

Sometimes, the silence of the Shrieking Shack is deafening when there is no one with him.

He curls onto the mattress on the bed, rolls his eyes back at the nonsense of Dumbledore (who still believes he’s a werewolf after _ seven fucking years _. He’s about to snap). Still, the old man is generous, and maybe Kurama doesn’t mind him as much because he has the others to divert his attention.

He feels a flicker of black and red chakra at the door, twisting himself forward to see Regulus and James entering through the door. Bites back a snarl, because he promised the Uchiha a truce, and he will keep his word unlike the last few times. What James’ doing with Regulus, he doesn’t know, but he’s going to find out.

“What the hell are you two doing here right now?” he asks, slipping out of the mattress. Usually Sirius comes here alone during the full moon, the others leaving them to their privacy as they spar and talk about their previous lives.

Regulus grimaces in pain, gesturing to his forearm with a roll of his eyes. Oh yes, the Dark Mark that he has yet to take off. He gestures for the boy to sit down on the mattress, taking his kunai out to slit open a small wound on his arm.

“So, why is he trying to summon you now?”

“He’s summoning all the Death Eaters,” Regulus shares with him quietly, shares a glance with James, the other man hovering over him worriedly and protectively. “And I can’t get out of Hogwarts, since I’m a minor and a student here. The professors will realize if I’m missing, if I go to his damn meeting.”

“That’s fantastic,” Kurama says sarcastically.

“It is not,” James snaps at him, before Regulus gives the Potter a raised eyebrow and motions him to sit down. He does.

“That was sarcasm, James,” the Black says slowly, keeping his gaze on James. Kurama doesn’t say anything, dipping his finger in his own blood and begins to trace the Dark Mark carefully. If there’s anything that’s more powerful than a cursed mark, it’s using blood seals to counter it.

At least, that’s what he discovered in Hogwarts when experimenting with seals and runes.

Every line and curve represents something, and the Dark Mark is nothing different. All he needs to do is counter the pain that it brings when Voldemort summons a Death Eater, and enforce chakra into it. Chakra is different from magic, after all, and Voldemort has never dealt with shinobi before.

(The relieved smile Regulus gives him as he and James leave produces some sort of fuzzy warmth in his chest. It reminds him of Naruto.)

* * *

Owls storm the Great Hall with a flutter of wings and feathers falling all over the place.

He snarls angrily when a feather drops into his cup of pumpkin juice and the Daily Prophet newspaper landing on his cookies. The owl in question hoots back at him before taking its’ leave with a flap of wings, making him glare after it in simmering annoyance.

Sirius hums next to him. “That was unexpected,” he says neutrally, makes him turn his glare at the Black. “Do you want to open the newspaper, Kurama?”

“My cookies,” he snaps as he takes the newspaper and shoves it into Sirius’ hands. Plucks the feather out of his drink, before he dumps the contents and chucks the cup towards an owl. A shriek of fury erupts from the owl as it dodges the cup, spinning its’ head to glare back at him. “My fucking drink!”

“You didn’t have to throw a cup at the owl, though,” James points out, stealing one of his sausages and bites into it. Kurama glowers at him. “What? I’m telling the truth.”

“Or they can have a normal mailman instead of feathers flying everywhere,” Lily mutters as she downs her pumpkin juice, which Kurama glances at with envy. The sound of paper crinkling catches his attention, before he looks over to Sirius’ horrified look.

White chakra flickers faintly.

“War is starting,” the Black whispers in terror, the headlines in the newspaper screaming another murder on the pages.

His own chakra roars.

* * *

“Kurama.”

He lifts his eyes to meet Severus’ hardened eyes, silently motioning the Slytherin to take a seat next to him. He continues with his homework as the man sits down next to him and does the same. There’s rarely a time he’s seen Severus without Lily or James these days, so seeing him alone surprises him.

Feels Severus’ magic twist in guilt and despair, before he glances towards the other and raises his eyebrow. “What the hell do you need me for, Strig?” he asks, cautiously using Severus’ chosen nickname in their small group. “Because I’m hardly fucking useful right now unless you tell me.”

Severus lets out a raspy laugh, shakes his head. His hand curls into a fist in front of him as Kurama patiently waits for him to speak. Or as patiently as he could, because he absolutely despises waiting for whatever.

“I may have gotten myself involved with Voldemort,” Severus quietly admits, fidgeting with his hands now. There are times when Kurama wants to strangle someone; this is one of those times. But right now is also a time to see what the hell Severus got himself into.

Kurama pinches the bridge of his nose with a groan. “Of course you did. _ Of course you did_. You gotten yourself involved with Dark magic, made Dark curses and hexes and made countercurses to them, and now you gotten yourself involved with Voldemort of all fucking people.”

“I know,” he answers flatly. “But this is something I have to do. I already told Lily about this, but I-”

“Don’t tell me,” Kurama says sarcastically, leans back in his chair as he stares over at Severus. “You’re gonna infiltrate Voldemort’s little group of their so-called Death Eaters and spy on them to give information to us.”

Silence.

He feels himself twitch, before he curses all the vile words he can think of at the moment in his mind. “For _ Sennin_’s sake, Severus, are you fucking kidding me?”

“No, I am not.”

“Then what the hell are you telling me for?”

“I need someone to tell my information to, which falls to you.” Severus gives him a small smirk. “You are the most likely one to ‘capture’ me. That will give the Death Eaters enough time to ‘rescue’ me and you to make your escape.”

Maybe he should consider getting a job that involves strangling people.

* * *

They’re in a closet.

Kurama still doesn’t understand how the hell they managed to get themselves stuck in a closet.

“Well,” Sirius says beside him with a huff of breathless laughter. He glances at him with a raised eyebrow, the man looking slightly terrified from the fact they’re in the said closet until someone gets them out. He isn’t used to seeing Sirius like this. “Looks like we’re stuck here.”

“Until someone gets us out or we try barging out ourselves,” he points out, feels their shoulders brush together as he tries to move. Tries to get more space for himself, but it feels like the closet’s growing _ smaller_. He scowls. “Did someone put a fucking shrinking charm on this thing?”

“Maybe.” Silence occurs between them, Sirius huddling closer to him as wood creaks around them at the sudden movement. Kurama only puts his arm around the Black’s shoulders, feels white chakra flicker with appreciation and warmth.

It only serves to feel heat creep up his cheeks.

Then Sirius speaks. “Kurama?”

“Yeah?”

A flicker of sheepishness. “Can... can I kiss you?”

“In a _ closet_?” Kurama asks in disbelief as he swivels his head to stare at him. Sirius shrugs helplessly as he leans closer to him, their faces inches away from each other. He licks his lips as he watches the man, watches his eyes soften at the sight. Swallows, and looks away from him. “Do you know what you’re asking for, Sirius?”

“Yeah. I do,” Sirius breathes gently as he feels heat radiating from his body, then a hand is tilting his head up and their lips are touching.

It’s awkward, the way they’re fumbling in the closet and the way they bump heads and teeth when they kiss. But Kurama can’t get enough of Sirius, only tangling his hands in black hair as he tries to bring him closer, closes his own eyes. It’s horrible. But it takes his breath away, even if they’re still stuck in a closet.

It’s perfect.

“Fucking shit, Hatake,” he mutters against Sirius, and hears a breathless laugh against him. “I- this is good.”

Sirius pulls away from him, his forehead on his own as he meets his eyes. Love dances in dark grey eyes, like fire raging across a forest, he realizes as he holds onto Sirius tightly. Kurama could lose Sirius any moment, but this... this is a moment he wants to savour, to never forget.

“I love you,” Sirius tells him.

Kurama gives him a small, genuine smile. “Me, too. I mean, I fucking love you, too.”

Sirius’ chuckle is his only response.

* * *

They’ve graduated Hogwarts, on the train back home, and Kurama’s ready to start a new life.

(War takes them by storm a few months later.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We are almost done with this fic! Thank you to everyone who has supported this fic! I might add a bonus chapter about Kurama as a tenth chapter, but that should be it.
> 
> Kurama has finally finished his final year of Hogwarts, and he's ready to tackle the next stages of his life. I wanted to try and develop the friendships between the group and Kurama, and also develop Sirius' relationship with him. I will try and work on my romantic scenes during the meantime.
> 
> Terms:  
_Jinchuuriki_ \- Human container.  
_Sennin_ \- Sage.
> 
> Enjoy!


	8. 1978-1981

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Three years of war.

“Did you pack everything?” his mother frets, checking the boxes as he stacks another one in the living room. Sirius chuckles quietly next to the doorway, gives him a small, loving smile as he turns to glare at him. That smile turns into a sly smirk, and he _ knows _ what Sirius’ thinking.

Kurama sticks up his middle finger at him in return.

“Yes, Mom,” he answers flatly instead of falling bait to Sirius, turns to his mother with a false smile. He’s not yielding to the man, not yet, not _ when his own mother is there_. Not when they still need to move the boxes outside, then make a portkey. “I got everything.”

“Good,” she says with a soft smile, reaching out to cup his cheek gently. Kurama tilts his head to the side questioningly, and she laughs. “Take good care of yourself, okay? I don’t want to see you coming home because a broken heart.”

“Mom.”

“And Sirius, I may be a muggle.” At that, his mother levels a stone-hardened stare at the Black, who seemingly swallows and backs away slowly. ‘But I am capable of ruining your life with these hands.”

“Mom!”

Her soft laughter is the response.

* * *

“James and I are dating,” Lily announces to them as they gather around a table in the Leaky Cauldron. Kurama chokes on his butterbeer, Sirius patting his back with a small smile on his face as he coughs. Peter looks between them with a shake of his head and a grin. “Geez, Kurama, don’t choke! Sev did the same thing when I told him!”

“I,” Kurama coughs, narrows his eyes at James as the man sheepishly holds his and Lily’s joined hands in the air. “I am going to fucking _ murder _ you if you hurt her.”

The Potter’s face drastically pales, before he shakingly lifts a finger towards him. “Preferably without a bludger,” he says, and Kurama has to throw his head back and laugh. “I am bloody serious, for Merlin’s sake! I have _ seen _ you knock out several people with them! I don’t have the intention to be one of them!”

“Don’t, I need him alive,” the woman says quickly, lets out a giggle as she smiles helplessly at James. Lily’s chakra bubbles with love and it reminds him of Naruto’s chakra, all happy and filled with love for Konoha. He shoves the thought away, focuses on Sakumo’s hand on his own.

“How did you two get together, anyways?” Peter asks curiously, taking a swing from his own butterbeer, his chakra flickering nervously. He files that in his mind for later.

“Confessions,” James says as Lily answers, “Beating him in Quidditch and accidentally knocking him into a concession that made him confess.”

Silence occurs.

“Well, now I know she can beat your ass anytime,” Kurama says flatly, taking another sip of his butterbeer and downs it in one go. James gapes at him, places a hand over his chest as he mockingly gasps in horror. “It’s the damn truth, deal with it.”

(He pretends not to notice the masked figures in the booths, and if Sirius’ hand grips him more tightly, then that’s his business.)

* * *

A curse flies past his ear, and he growls under his breath as he swings the kunai in his hand and flings it straight towards the last Death Eater. They dodge it and hiss an incantation out, pointing their wand at him.

Kurama can see the faint blue magic flow out of the wand, heads straight towards him in a shockwave of magic. _ I need to end this now_, he thinks with a scowl and a snarl. He quickly forms a hand seal, performing a _ shunshin _ to appear behind the Death Eater, and delivers a forceful kick to the head.

The Death Eater collapses at his feet.

Plucking his kunai out of the wall, he takes a quick sweep of his surroundings, all littered with unconscious Death Eaters. “I thought this was going to be an outing, not a fucking ambush,” he snarks at Sirius, the man limping into the cafe from the backdoor. “You alright?”

“I’m fine,” Sirius says, wincing as Kurama walks over to him. “You know what we were signing up for when we joined the Order of the Phoenix.”

“Yeah,” he says, taking out his wand and sets a binding spell on the Death Eaters. He hates it, taking orders from Dumbledore and going around to knock out the ones who caused Sirius so much pain. If they were shinobi here, they’d be able to have the job done already.

But they’re not.

They all jumped at the chance to stop Voldemort, immediately joining the Order of the Phoenix in order to take the Death Eaters down one by one. His chakra roars for blood, but he forces it down, focusing on Sirius’ wound as the man smiles at him. He can’t kill, even if he misses the exhilaration of it.

“Come here,” Kurama says gruffly, places a hand on Sirius’ back, makes the Black look questioningly at him. He slides an arm behind his knees, before sweeping the man up into his arms. Sirius yelps, scrambling to hold onto him as he holds him tightly. “There.”

White chakra flickers with bewilderment, embarrassment, and admiration. “Kurama!” 

“Shut the fuck up and let me do this for you,” he grunts, Sirius letting out a breathless laugh and holds onto him tighter.

* * *

“Voldy assigns pairs?” 

“Don’t call him that, please,” Regulus says flatly, placing his cup of tea down as he stares at him in disgust. Severus sits next to him, looking as if he’s about to spit his mouthful of tea out of his mouth. He stares at the both of them, as the younger Black continues. “That just sounds wrong.”

He shrugs, crosses his arms as he stares at the two spies. “I don’t give a shit, Uchiha,” Kurama says flatly. “So you two are a pair?”

“Yes,” Severus answers this time, tilts his head to the side. Black eyes narrow themselves as the man sets his cup down, black sleeves billowing in his wake as he does so. He doesn’t bother to point out that he could figure out the obvious. “The Dark Lord believes we can extract information from you because we’re friends.”

“He’ll use Legilimency to see if we extracted information from you,” Regulus offers quietly, seemingly grimacing as he takes another sip of his tea. “I learned about Occlumency from Narcissa and I use chakra to defend my mind, but Severus...”

There’s no other words that are said, but the way the younger Black glances at Severus says everything. Kurama snorts, shakes his head as he grabs his own cup of tea and sips it, allowing his mind to replay the words he’s just heard. 

From Narcissa’s letters to him, he knows how powerful Voldemort is using Legilimency, and he knows how to defend himself using his own chakra. Sirius, however, has had lessons in Occlumency from the Blacks, before getting disowned by them. The best course of action is having Severus take lessons from Sirius about how to use Occlumency to his best potential.

However, for that to work, Severus has to sneak away from the Death Eaters in secret in order for it to work.

Unless...

Growls under his breath at the complicated mess he managed to get himself, before glancing towards the window. Then an idea pops in his mind. He feels a smirk forming on himself, as he hears a gulp behind him. “I think I got an idea...”

“Merlin help us all...”

* * *

(Narcissa dips her head towards the madman in respect, carefully crafting shields of her chakra around her mind, and sees cardinal magic flash towards her with a hiss. Brushes the poke of magic in her mind off, doesn’t lift her head when she hears footsteps, watching her husband’s feet interact with the madman.

This man is far too much like Madara, and she hates it, especially how his magic feels like Madara’s chakra when he was under control.

There’s no telling what this man would do if he learns of chakra and shinobi, if he gets ahold of Kurama and herself. If Voldemort realizes how powerful they are, he would focus his attention on capturing them to take over the Wizarding World. She needs her _ otouto _ to be careful so it doesn’t come to that.

“Narcissa,” her husband’s voice cuts through her thoughts, and she lifts her head to meet Lucius’ eyes. “Please take Lord Voldemort to his chambers. I must attend to my duties right now.”

“Of course,” Narcissa drawls, cautiously draws tighter shields around her mind as she turns to look straight into red eyes. Those same eyes narrow themselves at her, just as she gestures towards the door and walks out, hears footsteps following her as she does so.

_ Act pretty_, she thinks to herself as she walks through the hallways, ignores the hisses of Voldemort behind her. _ Be obedient. _

_ Turn yourself into just a pretty tool. _

It’s a wonder how Voldemort doesn’t notice what she’s capable of yet.

(She slides a seal onto Voldemort once she puts a genjutsu up, and has to bite back a laugh when he walks into his room, so very unaware of what he’s about to experience.))

* * *

Kurama can only stare at the wedding invitation in his hand in slight disbelief. “For _ Sennin_’s sake, how long have you two been dating?”

“A couple of years by now,” James answers slowly, tilting his head in confusion as the man looks at him. “Why?”

“Since _ when_?”

“... our last year of Hogwarts? In the middle of the year? Didn’t you notice that we keep sitting next to each other and hold each other’s hands?”

He did not.

The expression on James’ face tells him everything. “And here I thought that you’re the observant one, Kurama,” the man teases him.

He has to resist the urge to throttle someone.

* * *

“Fabian Prewett,” the orange-haired man introduces himself, shaking his hand firmly with a smile. He shakes his hand back, slightly leans back from him as he lets out a shaky breath and a nod at the other man (Gideon, he recalls) next to Fabian. Too much like Kushina, with their grins and the way they speak.

“Kurama Uzumaki,” he says, letting go of the man’s hand as he steps back. Kurama doesn’t bother to stay, spinning around to find Sirius. It doesn’t take too long to find him, especially when the man’s on the couch, lounging there with James and Lily.

He flops himself down next to the man, burrowing his face into the crook of his neck. Sirius looks at him with a raised eyebrow, before pressing a kiss to his forehead and gives his wrist a gentle squeeze. Magic swarms his senses, and he has to fight the urge to growl.

“Alright?” he whispers in his ear.

“Barely.” Kurama turns his head to give him a flat look. “When the fuck are we going home?”

“Soon,” Sirius hums.

“Your definition of ‘soon’ is over an hour, idiot.”

(They do get home after two hours of lounging on the couch, just as Kurama has predicted.)

* * *

Lily and James’ wedding is a quiet affair, with only the Order of the Phoenix, and surprisingly Petunia there, as witnesses to their marriage. Kurama can’t help but feel that no matter where they are, human weddings are... extreme. Over the top. Too complicated for his liking.

Overall, it’s still nice to see two of his friends giggle with each other as if there’s some kind of hidden secret between them.

Friends.

Since when did he started calling these humans friends?

_ When they accepted you_, his mind whispers as he faintly smiles to himself, gripping the cup of firewhiskey that James passed to him earlier. _ When they stuck with you during your lowest, and when you felt happy_.

There’s no arguing with that.

Footsteps echo beside him and stops before he looks up to see Sirius with a wistful look. He doesn’t say anything, allowing the Black to curl an arm around him and pull him closer to him. White chakra slightly dims at something Sirius’ remembering in his head, before sparking back to life.

Downs the firewhiskey in one go before placing the cup on the table next to them. “What’s wrong?” Kurama asks, leans his head against the man’s shoulder.

“Just wondering if we could have something like this, too,” Sirius answers easily, kisses his forehead as he feels the man smile against his skin. He draws back from him, and Kurama follows his gaze towards the new wedded couple as they dance. Then replays Sirius’ words in his head.

Oh.

Wait.

“How long have we been dating, exactly?”

“Uh...” Sirius looks down at him, brows furrowing together in confusion. “Nearly five years now?”

Kurama has to take a moment to take that in, before- “Yes.”

“... pardon?”

“Take a lucky guess about what I mean, idiot.”

(If Sirius stares, then sweeps him off his feet and spins him around with a laugh of relief and joy, well, that’s also his business.)

* * *

“How are we still alive?” Sirius gasps out as they stand in an empty alleyway, hands on his knees as he pants and looks at him with wide dark grey eyes. Kurama shakes his head, leans against the wall as he grips his wand with a groan, pain shooting up his leg.

He glances down at his leg and grimaces at the sight of skin knitting itself together, red seeping out and staining his torn clothing. To think it would have been a simple mission of retrieving an item for Dumbledore, and it turns out to be a trap with a planned ambush.

Death Eaters surrounded them with Voldemort at the front, red eyes narrowed down at them with a sneer gracing an absolutely disgusting face. He grits his teeth from the memory, feels pain vanish from his leg. They barely made it out alive, with Death Eaters attacking them from every side.

Sirius had launched several hexes and curses while Kurama fired a few _ bijuudama _ to keep them from attacking them. There may have been property damage, but Kurama was much more eager to keep him and Sirius alive from the attacks. Voldemort only watched them, observing them (he had to switch back to his wand to prevent detection), and it still unnerves him.

Those eyes remind him too much of Madara, and he hates it.

“I am never going alone with you on a fucking retrieval mission again,” he says, just as Sirius shakes his head at him and pulls him closer. “I am so fucking done. How is it that our missions are somehow fucking botched up?”

“I don’t know, and I don’t care right now,” the Black mutters as he cups his face and tugs him into a rough kiss. Kurama squawks against him, holds onto his shoulders as he feels his cheeks heat up from how well Sirius’ doing this. White chakra gleams with amusement and fear, and he can’t blame him for it.

A groan escapes him when the man moves his lips to kiss his jawline, and embarrassment floods him. “Sirius... don’t you fucking dare right now!”

Another kiss. “Mm-hm. To bed?” Sirius suggests, a wicked smirk on his face.

“I should just kill you to end all of this shit.”

* * *

“Godfather?”

“Yes, Kurama,” Lily says warmly as she rocks little Harry in her arms, the boy’s bright cerulean eyes watching him like a hawk. They’re sharp, too sharp for his own liking, as if Harry’s observing him and asking himself if he’s a danger or not. “James and I want you as his godfather.”

“I’m going to make a horrible fucking godfather,” he says instead, avoiding those familiar eyes and focuses on Lily’s green ones. He doesn’t know how to interact with human brats, neither does he know how to care for them. There’s no way of telling if he can even take care of Harry, though Sirius can. “Why the hell didn’t you ask Sirius?”

“Language!” Sirius calls from the kitchen.

“Shut the fuck up, it’s not like the kid understands me!”

That’s a lie; Kurama is _ very _ sure the kid understands him, judging from the deadpan look in his eyes. Can babies even make looks like that? He makes a mental note to ask Sirius later, who actually _ has _ proper experience with a child, due to the Hatake brat.

“Because I know you,” Lily answers, and her magic sparks with honesty.

Oh.

(Later, he cradles Harry in his arms, and the boy’s familiar magic (no, _ chakra_-) flickers with wariness and _ yellow_. He grins sharply down at him, bared with teeth, and says, “Well, Hokage, you’re gonna be a delight in the later years, huh?”

After a moment, yellow chakra flickers with amusement.)

* * *

“Is the seal on him?”

“It’ll seal up most of his magic if he attacks a close one, yes?”

“... yeah, it will.”

“Good.”

(_"Kurama, help him, please-” _)

* * *

Kurama lifts his head from his book as Sirius grabs a jacket, obviously intending to head out. There’s nothing urgent right now, if he can recall. He clears his throat, making Sirius pause in the middle of putting his boots on.

“Where the hell do you think you’re going?” he drawls, stands up and drops his book on the couch as he walks towards him. Sirius shifts on his feet, tugging on his jacket as he avoids his eyes and stares at the ground. White chakra flashes with guilt. “Sirius... I’m not fucking stupid.”

Sirius shakes his head. “I need to check on Peter, I got a bad feeling about tonight.”

“Peter?” he echoes, licking his lips as the Black nods. _ There’s nothing wrong with Peter_, he protests in his mind, though he remembers the recent disappearances and the flinches when they discuss the Death Eaters. It’s suspicious, but he trusts Sirius. “The wimp? Why?”

A pause of silence, and he feels his heart sinking. “I... I can’t tell you yet,” Sirius admits quietly, reaches out to hold his hand carefully. “But after the war’s over, I will. I promise.”

“I’ll hold you to that,” Kurama says lowly, reaching up to grip his shoulders tightly. Sirius only laughs and presses his lips against his in a longing manner, the way they’ve been doing it when they nearly lost their lives and continued to fight during the war.

And it’s all too soon when Sirius pulls away, whispers “I love you” to him and heads out the door.

* * *

It’s morning, and all he can do is stare at the newspaper in front of him. He can barely register his hands digging tightly into the papers as he slowly loses control over the chakra in his hands. The papers slowly burn, black smouldering as they edge towards the centre.

Kurama feels a hole in his chest as he drops the papers on the table, closes his eyes to turn away. He lost. “No,” he tells himself, something wet blurring in his eyes as he reopens them to stare at the headlines. “I can’t-”

_ THE BOY WHO LIVES! _

And-

_ SIRIUS BLACK: MURDERER OF THE POTTERS! _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes! We're so close! One more chapter to go and it's off to planning the sequel!
> 
> I know that some people wished for a happy ending, but you'll have to wait and see what's going to happen. The next chapter might come out near the end of January since I got exams, as well as other fanfics if you're interested. But thank you to all of you who have stuck with me on this fic!
> 
> No, I did NOT kill off Regulus, I promise!
> 
> Terms:  
_Shunshin_ \- Body-flicker technique.  
_Otouto_ \- Little brother.  
_Genjutsu_ \- Illusion techniques.  
_Sennin_ \- Sage.  
_Bijuudama_ \- Tailed Beast ball.
> 
> Enjoy!


	9. 1981-1993

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Post-war, craving of revenge, loss of friends, and a new beginning.

He’s still staring at the newspaper when a loud bang on his door catches his attention, making him lift his head to stare at it. Kurama stands up, heaves a groan as he drops the newspaper on the table and heads to the door. When he opens it, Regulus is standing there with a look of hatred flickering through pale features.

“You saw the news I take it,” the younger Black says gravely as he watches him curl a hand into a fist.

“Fuck off,” Kurama tells him flatly, feels Regulus’ chakra stiffen before flare in rage. He doesn’t care, can’t exactly feel himself growing numb- “If you think he’s a traitor, then you got another fucking thing coming-”

Regulus cuts him off with a snarl. “No, I didn’t come here to gloat in your face that _ my _ brother was a _ traitor_,” he spits out. He stops with his retort, watching the younger Black narrow his eyes at him. Black and red chakra ripples angrily, as Regulus steps forward with a hiss. “I need your help.”

“For what?” Kurama asks suspiciously.

“Voldemort. He has something that has to do with immortality.”

His lips curl into the beginning stages of a snarl at the word. Immortality is far too close to what Madara nearly achieved, what Kaguya is. While the _ Bijuu _ is closely related to being immortal, they can get killed when their _ jinchuuriki _ gets killed themselves, and then have to regenerate their chakra again for a few decades.

It’s painful, and he doesn’t understand why humans can still be so _ greedy_.

“Let me get my coat,” he says instead, turns away to avoid looking at the Black.

* * *

“What,” Kurama says flatly as he stares at the bald creature with a horrible stench and clothes, “the fuck is _ that_?”

“I’ll take it as you’ve never seen a House-elf before,” Regulus says dryly as he pats the hideous creature on the head. Said House-elf glares at Kurama with a low grumble, squints at him with a suspicious look. Magic sparks and smooths over inside the tiny being, and he can’t help but flinch when the creature disappears.

“No, I never did,” he finally mutters as Regulus gestures for him to sit. It’s a dark room, with Dark magic lurking around the artifacts around them. It hisses and jerks back when he casually flares his chakra in the room, the other man unaffected by it as he’s sitting on a chair comfortably.

Another flare of magic reveals the House-elf in front of them with a tea set on a tray, placing it on the small coffee table in between them. He lifts his eyes to stare at the sneering and murmuring paintings, and pinches the bridge of his nose. This is going to get tiring.

“Where the fuck are we again?”

“12 Grimmauld Place,” Regulus easily answers, offers his House-elf a cookie and pours them tea.

The House-elf sobs. _ Literally_. “Master Regulus is too kind to poor Kreacher,” it says as it stares at the cookie and looks back at Regulus with a look of admiration and fondness. “Just like Master Sirius and all of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black.”

Kurama warily takes the cup of tea and nods slowly, before allowing his eyes to roam the room again. “That’s the stupidest name I’ve heard of for a Clan compound,” he says, before sipping his cup of tea and shudders at the bitter aftertaste. “But I’ll take it. What the hell do you need my help for, exactly?”

“They’re not a Clan, just a family,” the younger Black tells him. “And it’s a long story, but it deals with Horcruxes.”

“And what the fuck is that?”

“A Dark artifact that contains shards of someone’s soul, the same someone who created the Horcrux.” Kurama feels himself stiffen at the mention of souls, and places his cup of tea down so he doesn’t spill it. “Their soul would be split in pieces, the darkest magic of all.”

It’s like chakra imprints, but it’s different, more dangerous. Even _ he _ knows that messing with one’s soul can create problems and issues that extend beyond a mortal’s reach.

“Voldemort has one.”

* * *

Kurama can’t help but slam his fists onto the desk, splintering it in half. Glares at Dumbledore as he tries to calm himself down. “What the hell do you mean that I can’t take care of Harry? He’s my fucking godson! It’s literally what I fucking signed up for!”

The Headmaster of Hogwarts shakes his head slowly, his magic flickering with guilt, grief, and a need to protect. He doesn’t need the old man’s reasoning, doesn’t need to watch him try and make him break Lily and James’ wishes. “Do you know how Voldemort died?” Dumbledore asks instead.

“Old man, I don’t need you to try and avoid the question with another question!” he snaps as he feels the control of his _ sakki _ snap and ooze around the room. Dumbledore doesn’t seem fazed, but he can see him slightly stiffening. Good. He needs to know who exactly he’s dealing with.

“Love,” the old man says as if he doesn’t say anything. “Lily sacrificed herself to save Harry, and her love protected him from getting murdered by Voldemort.”

_ Bullshit_, he thinks to himself, but love is powerful, powerful enough to tame him, to change the world like Naruto’s love for everyone. If Lily is anything like Kushina (always, always, _ always_-), it’s their love for their sons that would change everything. It explains some things, but it doesn’t tell him _ why_.

“And what the hell does that have to do with preventing me from taking care of Harry?” he growls as he uncurls his fists and glares at him.

“He is safer with family,” Dumbledore says gently. “There are still Voldemort’s Death Eaters who may want to harm him if he stays with you.”

Kurama snorts. “I am fucking capable of taking care of Harry and myself,” he tells Dumbledore coolly as his thoughts race in his mind. There’s no telling what the old man would do if he doesn’t obey his order and try to find Harry. He knows Harry can (probably) take care of himself, but he’s his godfather, he’s supposed to be there for him- “I’m not that pathetic.”

“Yes, I know. However-“

“Shut the fuck up, you’re not ordering me around anymore,” he snaps harshly, not bothering when the man visibly, slightly flinches from his _ sakki _ growing again. He forces it under his control, takes deep breaths to calm himself down. He’s not a puppet, not like how Madara controlled him.

“I’m going to find him. If you try and stop me, I’m going to kick your fucking ass from here to the asshats of the Death Eaters.” Kurama turns to walk out the door, and refuses to look back.

(When he leaves, Dumbledore shakes his head sadly and looks to the ceiling. “Oh, Kurama,” he murmurs quietly to himself. “Not yet. Not until Harry chooses his true home will he come under your protection.”)

* * *

When Regulus had told him he managed to secure a visit to Azkaban, to _ Sirius_, Kurama immediately takes him up on his offer to come with him. Only a part of him regrets it when they come into contact with the Dementors, feels numbness and cold when they pass him.

Their magic reminds him of Kaguya’s icy touch.

They all turn to lift bony fingers towards him and he flares his chakra in an attempt to drive them away. It doesn’t, and he watches how some of his chakra _ burns _ their black cloaks, but they don’t seem to notice, only closing in on them. Regulus holds tightly on his arm, and forces him into the room they are guided towards.

Out of the corner of his eyes, he sees one Auror lift their wand and cry, “_Expecto Patronum_!”

A silver wisp floats from the wand, before transforming into a beautiful swan, the bird squawking and flapping its’ wings. It soars towards the Dementors with a shriek, drives them away as they scream with a high-pitched sound. Kurama is mesmerized by the warmth of the magic he feels, and Regulus glances at him.

“We need to learn that spell,” Kurama says, turns around and freezes when he sees Sirius in chains.

“Okay, I get it, you wanna learn it,” Regulus snaps as he shuts the door behind them. “But fucking do it after we deal with this. Sirius,” he adds in greeting, but doesn’t step up to hug him. He can feel relief flickering in the younger Black, but there’s something else, something holding him back-

Well. That isn’t his concern right now.

Sirius’ dark grey eyes holds a glint of relief, too, though the cuffs on his wrists don’t move. “Regulus, Kurama,” the older Black greets back, before Kurama bursts into action and curls his fingers along the man’s dirty clothing, hugs him tightly and breathes in the familiar scent.

“You fucking asshole,” he mutters, and feels Sirius slightly trembling underneath him. It unnerves him, the way Sirius is holding himself right now. “If you told me beforehand, I could have helped. I could have done something instead of you being in this fucking prison!”

“You wouldn’t have been able to do anything,” Sirius whispers in his ear, resting his head on top of his shoulder as they stay there. “Trust me, Kurama. I couldn’t even stop him.”

He doesn’t answer him, only relishing in the feeling that Sirius is there in his arms, white chakra glowing brightly as it should be. Love pulses in his eyes, and he lets go of the feeling rising in his chest. He can’t let go of him, not yet, not until he completes the task that Sirius set out for himself.

“Who’s the traitor, Sirius?” he growls.

Sirius looks at him in the eyes, before pressing his lips against his cheek and murmurs, “Peter. Wormtail.”

(He promises revenge, love, and a vow.

Sirius only smiles sadly, but lets him go when they need to leave.)

* * *

(Narcissa smiles down at her little boy, gently kisses his forehead as she warily waits for her husband to return from work. She has seen her former _ jinchuuriki _ give so much love to the young genin, and she adores the little ones. It’s just too bad that they’re afraid of her, and can’t see her.

Draco babbles a little, dark grey eyes a little too sharp for his age, before looking towards her with a flicker of confusion. Magic flares (_not magic, not magic-_), but she pauses, looks at him carefully, and lifts a finger for him to grab. There’s something familiar about him, but she’s not certain.

He grabs her finger with a grubby hand and lightning sparks through their touch, crackles with a small hiss of annoyance. Ah. So he’s here, too. Narcissa wonders what exactly is in store for her little boy, her son, and unfortunately, it includes idiotic shinobi.

“Well,” she tells Draco, who’s looking at her with a curious gaze. Chakra flickers uneasily, and she only shakes her head. “You are going to be trouble, aren’t you, Hokage?”

The boy babbles, but his chakra flickers with amusement.

(If Lucius walks in and walks towards them with a soft smile, he will never notice Narcissa’s sharp gaze and Draco’s slightly uncomfortable aura. He’s already planning his son’s, his _ legacy’s_, future, and pays no attention to Narcissa’s growing fury.

A pity he doesn’t know what a _ Bijuu _ is.))

* * *

He stares at the intruder in his apartment, the said person currently hanging from the ceiling after activating one of the traps he’s placed.

“Okay, who the fuck are you, buddy? Why the hell are you trying to get into my _ apartment_?” Kurama demands as he crosses his arms. The person _ does _ look familiar, though he might be getting soft with the humans.

Violet magic twists and hisses at him as he gives the person an unimpressed look at the weak attempt of scaring him off. It’s almost a pitiful show, seeing how they’re still hanging upside down, really. Instead, he taps his foot and raises a finger, wills a _ Bijuudama _ to form and he holds it there.

“I can vapourize you,” he says flatly, watches the person stiffen at the mention of it. “Make sure that _ no one _ knows where you’ve gone off to. I can even make you suffer more before I do that. Or, you tell me who the hell you are and how you managed to get past some of my seals at the fucking entrance. Your choice.”

The person stares with that creepy looking eye, and he has to roll his own eyes. “It seems you have the proper instincts to keep wary,” the person finally says, the fake eye darting about. He’s about ready to pluck the damn thing off. “And they say that _ I’m _paranoid.”

“Have you ever heard of privacy?” Kurama asks, willing the _ Bijuudama _ to vanish. “Ever?”

“... constant vigilance.”

“Are you fucking serious? You aren’t in the position to say that, considering you’re upside down and about to be vapourized to _ dust_.” 

The person snorts. “I was trying to find Remus Lupin, lad. It led me here, and I need to ask him a few questions,” they say, waving their wand to cut them down from the ceiling. They land on the ground on both feet... is that a _ peg_? Kurama’s brows rises at the sight, before he tilts his head for the man to continue. “As for you-”

They take a step forward, and Kurama feels the pulse of one of his seals activating, before a net springs out at them. The person only calmly slices the net in half and gives him a smirk. “As I was saying,” they say as they sit on the couch. “I was looking for Remus Lupin.”

“It’s Kurama now,” he corrects flatly. “Not Remus. What the fuck do you want with me?”

“I see,” the person says, before they stand. “I’m Alastor Moody of the Ministry of Magic. I need help, lad, and you’re the only one who can help me.”

_ Fucking fantastic_.

* * *

“Severus.”

“Kurama.”

“How’s your new job at Hogwarts?” Kurama asks dryly, sips his cup of butterbeer as he nurses the headache from meeting one of the other members of the disbanded Order of the Phoenix. He didn’t think he’d meet a thief of all things he could have done. “Having fun tormenting the students?”

Severus shakes his head, downing a small cup of pumpkin juice. “Hardly, they’re dunderheads, but they learn quickly,” he says quietly, dryly, but he can hear the fondness in his voice. “I just hope they’re not going to blow up the bloody classroom with the wrong ingredients.”

“That sounds fun,” he says in amusement.

“Certainly.”

The silence between them is comfortable, even if there’s something that Kurama can feel Severus wanting to say something, but he doesn’t push.

* * *

His new jobs includes studying Dark creatures and their habits, and tutoring some students on their magic. Surprisingly, he hasn’t scared them off with his attitude, and they’re improving from the last time they’ve done something together. Not that it’s stopping him from teaching them some... interesting spells.

Kurama glances outside towards the full moon, feels his chakra bubble and hiss as they drive away the Dark magic. He’s never been a werewolf, and he’s certainly glad that he isn’t, considering how he needs to work and make sure Regulus isn’t overworking himself.

The Dark magic isn’t going to go away, not until he finds the werewolf who bit him and nearly turned him back into a monster. He needs to figure out how they infected his chakra with their bite, with their own kind of magic. Infection? Infection magic? A curse? Is it something that’s almost non-curable?

Kurama feels his lips curl into a snarl at the memory of that werewolf and what they’ve nearly done to him. He’s already been a monster, someone who took away Naruto’s parents, and he refuses to bow down to it again.

He just needs to find Harry. There’s been no trace of the boy anywhere, and he doesn’t know where his godson’s been ever since Dumbledore told him he’s taken to family. What family? All he knows is that Petunia is Lily’s sister, but he doesn’t know where she lives, let alone ask if she has Harry with her.

On the other hand, he also needs to find Peter. The traitor is barely anywhere to be found as well, and he doesn’t want to risk the chance of losing that asshole. The only asshole who has a ticket out for Sirius’ freedom. His hand curls into a fist.

Dark magic hisses in his mind.

He only flares his chakra and relishes in the screams he can still hear. It’s the best that he can do for now.

(_Searching, waiting, and searching once more. That’s how it’s always been._)

* * *

When an owl flies through the window with a letter, Kurama raises an eyebrow at the sudden news and reaches out to untie the letter from it. The owl hoots, brown wings flapping as it settles down on his table. A feather flutters and falls upon his cookies.

He twitches.

The owl only hoots again.

“Fucking hell, I’m going to deal with you later, you puny creature,” he tells it, before opening his letter to read. He feels his eyes widen at every word, carefully folds the paper away just as Regulus walks into the kitchen with a yawn.

Black and red chakra spins with exhaustion. “Who’s the letter from?” Regulus asks tiredly as he reaches out to grab a bag of coffee beans to grind, just as Kreacher appears to begin cooking breakfast. They’ve reached a conclusion to their mutual hatred towards each other, he thinks as he tilts his head to the side.

“From Dumbledore,” Kurama answers, before cracking the newspaper open to reveal a picture of Sirius looking terrified at the picture, lips peeled back to reveal teeth as the man leans back. “Fuck.”

“From the old bastard himself,” the younger Black mutters as he flops himself down on an empty chair. “What did he want?”

“To fucking teach at Hogwarts,” he says curtly and flatly. He throws the newspaper towards Regulus, before standing up to head back to his room. There’s no telling what Dumbledore is planning, especially when it comes to Sirius. “Kreacher! Put my breakfast on hold if you can! I have stuff to do.”

“Of course,” Kreacher answers back, the House-elf’s voice faint as he storms out of the kitchen.

Harry.

Harry would be in his Third Year by now.

Kurama smirks.

Time to free Sirius, and to find his godson.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kurama's reign of reincarnation has come to an end. Thank you to all of you who've stuck with me to the end of this fic! Thank you so much for all of the support, kudos and comments I've received!
> 
> The sequel to this will probably take a really long time to get posted, since I'm working on other fics and I want to get them finished before I return. However, there will be reincarnation fics regardless! If you wanna put down suggestions for a said reincarnation fic, go ahead! Thank you again!
> 
> **Terms**:  
_Bijuu_ \- Tailed beast.  
_Jinchuuriki_ \- Human container.  
_Sakki_ \- Killing intent.  
_Bijuudama_ \- Tailed beast ball. A technique all _Bijuu_ and _Jinchuuriki_ can use.
> 
> Enjoy!


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